Ocean Waves

I've always lived near the ocean. I love the smell of briny air--whether it's winter, spring, summer, or fall. I believe a walk on the beach is the antidote for many ills. "The vast majority of water on the Earth's surface, over 96 percent, is saline water in the oceans." (https://water.usgs.gov/edu/earthhowmuch.html) Of course, humans cannot drink ocean water, but the ocean provides fish, lobsters, clams, shrimp, mussels, and other delicacies humans enjoy.

I feel like I'm standing at the edge of the world when I'm at the beach. However, I would never want to live on the beach. I know the power of an angry ocean and the damage it can do. It is far, far better to live on high ground.

Since I'm a Jersey girl, water figures prominently in many of my books. I got the idea for Sea of Hope while walking on the beach one day. Heaven's Blue came about when my sister's job inspired me to write about a mosquito researcher. Irons in the Fire resulted from frequent rides in hubby's motorboat.  In Daddy Wanted, the heroine's hobby is surfing. I never tried surfing, but I've spend hours watching surfers catch waves--and when there's a storm coming I always go to the beach to watch the daredevil surfers brave the awesome power of the ocean.

Humans are supposed to care for the earth and the environment. It's a job given to us by God. We haven't done very well in obeying that command. The beaches in New Jersey are being swallowed up by the ocean. The storms are becoming more violent. The earth is warming, the ice caps are melting, and I worry that I might soon be living on oceanfront property. As much as I love a walk on the beach, I don't want the ocean at my door.

But I still find the beach a wonderful place to spend an afternoon. I can watch the gulls and the fishermen. I can pick up shells and marvel at their beauty. I can make up more stories to write. It's a great place to relax and simply be.

AI Books Flooding the Market

Image by SCY from Pixabay

 It has become more difficult to sell books. I LOVE writing books. Several of my books have won awards and the books get good reviews. I know that there are people who don't read books--at all. I cannot understand why anyone would not want to read a book. There are folks who watch movies all the time. To me, the book is always better than the movie. 

But perhaps the most difficult problem with selling books at the current time, is the influx of AI generated books. The book market is currently being flooded with novels generated by artificial intelligence. This all began when genuine, human authors’ books were fed into computers so the machines could learn how to put together a plot. The machines learned quickly and now there a books being cranked out by the thousands. 

I haven’t read any AI generated books. I always read books by authors I know who are real people. I am currently reading Hilltop Wedding by Kathleen Bailey. I received an advanced copy because the author knows me and I know her. I’ll give her a good review because it is a wonderful story. Helping a genuine, human author is fun and inexpensive. 

This problem with AI worries me and brings to mind the haunting story “There Will Come Soft Rains”written by Ray Bradbury, It’s a short story. You should read it. It may change your mind about some things.

I am not against computers. I use one all the time. It does make writing a novel easier. When I first started writing, I used a manual typewriter. Making corrections was exhausting. But I do believe humans are better at writing stories. 

There are plenty articles that can help you know whether you might be buying an AI generated book. One of them is https://www.library.pima.gov/blogs/post/did-a-robot-write-this-tips-for-identifying-ebooks-written-by-ai/

Also, go to Kathleen Bailey’s website at https://kathleendbailey.weebly.com/ and watch for the release of Hilltop Wedding. Read a great story written by a genuine human. 

Guest Post: TREADING WATER: BARELY ABOVE WATER by Gail Pallotta

My guest today is Gail Pallotta. She is a wife, Mom, swimmer and bargain shopper who loves God, beach sunsets and getting together with friends and family. She’s a former Grace Awards finalist, Reader’s Favorite Book Award winner, TopShelf Book Awards Finalist and a Top Author pick. She’s published ten books, poems, short stories and several hundred articles. Some of her articles appear in anthologies while two are in museums. A people person, she enjoys connecting with readers. She puts out a newsletter about her books as well as those of friends, includes a recipe and a giveaway. Sign up for her newsletter at https://www.gailpallotta.com/mainphp.html and visit her website at gailpallotta.com

Her latest release is Treading Water, the revised edition of Barely above Water. Here’s what it’s about: 

Suzie Morris suffers a sense of isolation and loneliness when she’s struck with an illness her physician can’t diagnose. Without family, she’s on her own. To make matters worse, her boyfriend dumps her. Relying on her Christian faith, she moves to Destin, Florida, to get treatment from an alternative doctor. After she lands a temporary job coaching a fun, county-sponsored rag-tag swim team, her handsome boss, Matt Combs, renews her belief in love. However, when Matt learns of Suzie’s medical problem, he cuts romantic ties. Recently saddened by the illness and death of his mother, he fears he couldn’t face another loss. Later he regrets his decision and tries to make amends. Hope for healing flickers inside Suzie when she hears of new remedies, but will the latest discoveries work for her? If she recovers, can Matt regain her trust?

This book is FREE on August 25, 2026. Now read the excerpt!

    Suzie fidgeted in her chair three months later as she sat in an office in Destin, Florida. A door shut, and she jumped. She took a deep breath and pulled back her shoulders. She would appear confident and calm, God willing. She had to steady her right hand. The interviewer would probably offer to shake it.

    A man entered and walked to her, his broad shoulders taking over the room. “Matt Combs. Sorry I’m late. I hope you weren’t too bored sitting here.” He offered a handshake.
She peered at his squared, strong-looking extremity as she extended her hand as fast as she could. “I’m fine, thank you. It’s nice to meet you.” Had he detected the trembling? He didn’t stare at her hand. Guess not.

    As Mr. Combs situated himself, Suzie surveyed his office, getting a glimpse of who he was. A plaque for Outstanding Manager as head of the Okaloosa County Parks and Recreation Department hung on the wall alongside pictures of kids in bathing suits and soccer players in blue uniforms. A full trophy case sat next to his bookcase. She could get him another victory in spite of the sickness, if he’d give her a chance.

    The rollers on his black chair clicked as he pulled it to his metal desk. He pushed a pile of folders to one side then looked up with a sheepish grin. “I haven’t had a chance to clean. Harold Gubb, my assistant and the county bookkeeper, was out sick last week. I’m a little backed up.”
Suzie clenched a pencil in three fingers and released it, then repeated the action in her lap. She started the habit to check her strength after she’d lost twenty-five pounds. Now she did it when she was nervous. “You have a nice office.”

    Matt’s shoulders relaxed. “I suppose, as county cubicles at community centers go, it’s okay.” He waved his hand toward a desk in front of his. “Barely room for Harold when we’re both here, but I’m in the field quite a bit. We manage.” He retrieved a folder from the pile he’d just moved and studied it. “Ahh, I see you coached a swim team and won your division every year except your first. That’s quite an accomplishment.” He gazed at her with admiration in his eyes.

    Suzie scooted up as hope Matt Combs might hire her flickered in the back of her mind.
“You were in high school and college then. Now, you’re...” He glanced at her application, then sat back in his seat. “Twenty-five?” He arched an eyebrow. “Uh, most recently, you’ve worked as an editor of a community magazine in Blue Mountain, North Carolina. It says here you quit your job to move? Could I ask why?”

    Suzie recoiled at the suspicion in his voice. Carson would say she had to move because she was a druggie. Sad that his ridiculous opinion still upset her. She glanced at the three-quarter-length sleeve of her blouse. Before Carson broke up with her, he’d suggested she wear sufficient clothing to cover her skinny body. Dwelling on him wasn’t worth the hurt and ire that rose from recalling his degrading remark, but more importantly she couldn’t let anything distract her. She had to have this job. She swallowed hard. Play the game.

Buy link:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/1972624210

On Sale at Smashwords Summer Sale!

HALF PRICE for Outside Blessings during the Smashwords Summer Sale. https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1775506 Use the coupon or the code and you'll pay only 1.49! From a review on Amazon, "...a captivating story set against the backdrop of a raging sea and the age old battle of good against evil."

 

Adding To My Collection

A few weeks ago, I went to the annual AAWU book sale in Freehold. This event is held every year and the amount of books on sale is phenomenal. This year, I found some true treasures--at least in my point of view. I bought four Phyllis A. Whitney novels. I was so delighted! I already have six other books by Miss Whitney. In the past, I sometimes I gave them away, which I now regret. Each of her books are worth reading more than once. She was such a master at suspense, but also great with characterization and description. 

I often read ebooks, and I like them for their convenience. After all, I can pull out my phone and read a book anywhere. But I still find it a pleasure to sit down with a paper book on a rainy day and use a good old-fashioned book mark to tuck in the pages. 

When I first became serious about writing, I turned to a book by Phyllis Whitney on writing. That book was a great help to me. I wrote about it here. 

Do you have a favorite author? I have more than one. 😊 

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How Grandma Survived The Great Depression

My Wonderful Grandma 

     My grandmother raised seven children on a ten acre spread of sloping hilltop in western Pennsylvania during the Great Depression. My grandfather, a coalminer, built the house they lived in.     
     My grandmother had a garden and canned everything. There were chickens and a cow, but now and then my mother had to pick the buckshot out of animals killed for food. 
     Recently, I've seen many recipes on the Internet listing foods eaten during the Great Depression. All of these recipes are easy to make, inexpensive, and filling. I was surprised to realize that several of the meals my mother prepared on a regular basis were used during that era. So, I have to assume my mother learned them from her mother out of necessity.
     I considered those dishes "comfort food." My mother would make up a batch of tunafish, and peas in white sauce and I thought it was delicious. At a young age, it was usually my job to make the white sauce. I had to stir it carefully so it didn't burn until it was thickened. I always got the same task for pudding. (I included the mention of that job in Love’s Gift.) In fact, white sauce was useful in extending many meals. My mom used it with green beans and bacon, too, which is considered an Appalachian favorite. Since my grandparents lived close to the West Virginia line, that isn’t a surprise. 
    Another filling, inexpensive meal was Lima beans and breakfast sausage. It may also be a classic Appalachian meal from what I’ve read. I really enjoyed it. My grandma never used written recipes. She memorized them in her head. My mother actually owned a cookbook, The Good Housekeeping Cook Book. At the time of my mother's death, that book had no covers and the index was gone as well. Nevertheless, anyone could see which recipes were my mother's favorites by the stains or dough on the pages. None of the meals in that book were the ones she made by memory, just as her mother did--the ones that fed a family of nine and didn't cost much. 

    I love to try new recipes, but those old ones from the past still have a special place in my heart. Does your family cook any recipes that came from the Great Depression?

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Em Dash Abuse

I am an em dash abuser. I tend to use the quick symbol all over the place. I type in em dashes wherever a comma would suffice. Sigh.

In The Elements of Style, Strunk and White said, "A dash is a mark of separation stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than parentheses."

I think my em dash habit is due--in part--to the way I speak. I speak in em dashes!

I have a few examples from The Keeper's Promise below. You see how I originally typed each phrase and how I fixed them.

This was why Bryce loved Shucker's Point--why he had stayed here when many others had left.

It now reads:

This was why Bryce loved Shucker's Point, and why he had stayed here when many others had left.

Sometimes I didn't really need the em dash at all.

that she wasn't a vicious killer--or a psychopath.

Just one simple conjunction works fine:

that she wasn't a vicious killer or a psychopath.

Everyone needs an editor. I have been very grateful for mine.

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