Category Archives: Every Day Life

What a Fast Month!

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Garden Peppers by Randy Cockrell

Garden Peppers by Randy Cockrell

Don’t you find that when you’re busy, things like months, just fly by? Me too. Is it cliché to say that? Cliché or not, it’s true. Between the Fair at the start of the month, my broken molar and crown, and the usual life stuff like meetings, new projects, gardening and well, I’m not sure what else, it’s just flown by for me.

I’ve been trying my best to write on my 2 Year Novel project on a more regular basis. I’m over half way on that story now and liking where it’s going. I’m way behind on the lessons. I should be well into editing at this point but still writing the first draft. Shrugs. I’ll get it done and do all of the lessons. That’s all I care about. That, and getting a good story out of it.

I’ve also picked up a publishing gig for a fellow author. It’s more difficult than pubbing my own work but still, I’m glad to help her out. It’s an Historical Fiction, about a Civil War Union Surgeon and his wife who did nursing for him. Based on real people, I’ve been fascinated with the story. I also did an edit for another author friend, a lawyer procedural? Not sure what the genre is but it’s a hell of a story. So excited for her to publish it. I’ll brag it up when she releases. You all have to read this book.

Picture today is from my garden, the Fresno chilies. They look beautiful. I’m going to roast them on the grill, peel the skins away and freeze them. Won’t they be wonderful in chili’s and such all winter long?

I have scheduled a signing at the Pine Craft Fair October 11th and 12th with three other authors. I also have a speaking engagement with the Payson Soroptimist Club in November, the 12th at noon. Time to start putting my name out there and ramping up the sales.

Speaking of getting the word out, First Encounter, the first book in my new Brown Rain series released on September 18th. You can get all of the links to purchase at the end of this post. I sent out a newsletter with the announcement and an offer that’s just for newsletter subscribers. Do you want in on the action? Look below for a link to the Newsletter sign up button.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.

Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know if you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.

First Encounter: a Brown Rain Story released September 18th! I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy it and my other books at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

Exciting Week

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Pink Flower by Connie Cockrell

Pink Flower by Connie Cockrell

It’s been a bit of a tough week for me. Last Tuesday I was at lunch in a restaurant with my husband when I bit into a tater tot and had a bottom molar disintegrate(with crown). Nothing like a mouth full of potato and tooth. I was able to see the dentist that afternoon. He ground the broken bit down so I wouldn’t cut myself then scheduled me for a new crown the next morning. Four hours later I was home with a new crown and minus $800 as my insurance wouldn’t cover a new crown for that tooth. They said they’d only cover a new one every 5 years and I was 6 months too early. Sigh. What can you do?

The tooth thing took me through Wednesday. Then on Saturday hubby and I drove about 200 miles to see a friend in Prescott. After a nice lunch and chat, we parted ways. Hubby and I did a little shopping but were on the road about an hour after lunch. Being diligent, I took that ride time to draft out another chapter in the book I’m using as my Two Year Novel project. The farther we went the worse I felt. I finished the scene and tossed the notebook into the back seat then tried to deal with the pain in my abdomen. I eyed passing scenery with the idea I might have to stop. A full on sweat broke out and I began to feel shaky. Finally, just after the tiny town of Strawberry, about 15 miles from home I had the hubby pull the car over and proceeded to loose my lunch on the side of the road.  Still sweating and shaky we made it home but I spent about 20 minutes in the bathroom. It was definitely food poisoning. Fortunately my system seemed to clear the problem over the next 5 hours. I woke up Sunday morning feeling pretty good and went for a walk.

First Encounter, the first book in my new Brown Rain series released on September 18th as promised. You can get all of the links to purchase at the end of this post. I sent out a newsletter with the announcement and an offer that’s just for newsletter subscribers. Do you want in on the action? Look below for a link to the Newsletter sign up button.

The garden is in fall mode. The peppers, both sweet and hot, are finally turning to the colors they’re supposed to be. I may be able to roast and freeze the hot peppers soon. I have poblano and Fresno chilis. They’ll be very good this winter in my chili. I’m still am picking more cherry tomatoes than we can eat. This won’t last much longer. I expect some sort of hard frost anytime now.

The picture accompanying my blog today was taken by me on a recent hike. It’s still rainy season here in Arizona and the wildflowers are out in force.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.

Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know if you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.

First Encounter: a Brown Rain Story released September 18th! I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy it and my other books at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

Mid-September Update

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Pink Roses against the September sky by Randy Cockrell

Pink Roses against the September sky by Randy Cockrell

Oh my gosh! Totally forgot to do a blog post last Monday. I was exhausted after the fair ended last Sunday and didn’t have any brain power left to do a post. I apologize for that. The fair went pretty well. Like military plans, fair plans rarely survive first contact but we got most things done and fair-goers had fun. That’s all that counts. I’ve been posting pictures of livestock 4H and FFA winners on the fair Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Northern-Gila-County-Fair/136645043024179. These kids work really hard raising their animals and learning how to show them. It seemed fitting to post their accomplishments.
First Encounter, the first book in my new Brown Rain series is up on Amazon’s new Pre-Order feature. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MW8AYOK If you use another ereader, it’s also up on Kobo for pre-order at http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/first-encounter-6. Release date is scheduled for September 18th.
The garden is in fall mode. The green and yellow beans have withered, so no more of them. The peppers, both sweet and hot, are ripening. I may be able to roast and freeze the hot peppers soon. I have poblano and Fresno chilis. They’ll be very good this winter in my chili. I had to cut my mint down. The bees love the flowers but the flowers were going to seed. I can’t have mint seed spreading everywhere. I’d never get rid of the stuff. The bees can still visit the oregano flowers so they’ll have flowers until they go into hibernation. My butternut squash is also ripening. The very first ones to grow this spring are ready to pick. I’ll store them in my garage and the last ones will keep all winter. Tomatoes are sprawling all over. I still am picking more cherry tomatoes than we can eat. The regular tomatoes I par-boil, skin, chop and freeze. They’ll make great spaghetti sauce this winter. Do you garden? What’s still going strong for you?
The picture accompanying my blog today was taken by my husband of some of the roses I have blooming right now. I love the way they look against this mid-September sky.
Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know if you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.
Revolution: A Gulliver Station Story released August 1st! I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy it and my other books at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

Happy Labor Day

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BBQ by Amanada Supak via www.deviantart.com

BBQ by Amanada Supak via www.deviantart.com

Here’s hoping you have a good Labor Day and a safe and fun weekend. We made no special efforts this year. No travel or special barbeques. It’s been nice to just stay home and take care of things around the house.

The Northern Gila County fair is in five days. The set up work starts today when the tents are set up. Then Tuesday we put up exhibit stands and the livestock people set up corrals, pens and show rings Wednesday people can bring their exhibits. It’s always fun to see what everyone has been working on all year.  Thursday is the exhibit judging. Friday, Saturday and Sunday is the Fair. We have a lot of fun things planned for the weekend: Hotdog eating and watermelon eating contests, a Battle of the Bands, a lip sync contest and a lot more. Check out the Attractions and the Entertainment tabs at www.NorthernGilaCountyFair.com. We’re also on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Northern-Gila-County-Fair/136645043024179.

My novella, First Encounter is with the editing service, SilverJayMedia.com. It should be back soon. Hot! I tried out Amazon’s new Pre-Order feature. It was very easy for me to use and I put First Encounter up on it for pre-order. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MW8AYOK Release date is scheduled for September 18th.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.

Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know if you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.

I have an in depth interview on my Smashwords Author page. You can read it here.  Don’t see information about me you’d like to know? Leave me your question in my comments and I’ll try to answer it.

Revolution: A Gulliver Station Story released August 1st! I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

August is a long Month

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Cover for First Encounter by Connie Cockrell

Cover for First Encounter by Connie Cockrell

We’ve had a lovely rain a few days ago, an inch and a half’s worth. Everything plant perked right up. Two of the apples fell from the tree Saturday morning. They aren’t very large but they tasted good. Husband saw them on the ground from the office window and told me they “self-harvested.”
The Northern Gila County fair is in two weeks. The fair book is out, posters have been hung around the area and we’ve kicked off a contest. Take a selfie with one of the posters and after Liking our Facebook page, post the picture. Drawings will be made for prizes. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Northern-Gila-County-Fair/136645043024179. I try to post something new on there at least once per day. I continue to update the website, www.NorthernGilaCountyFair.com, to add information concerning all of the activities, attractions and entertainment.
My novella, The Beginning, has had a title change to First Encounter. I am also trying out a new editing service, SilverJayMedia.com. I sent them a sample and they returned it quickly and with a lot of corrections. Ack! I thought I had edited it better than that. Anyway, I’m going to have them edit the whole thing. They have a very cool estimating tool on their site so you can see how much their different editing services will cost. I really like that feature. With it you can see how much each service costs individually or added all up. You can pick the service or set of services that best meets your needs and wallet. Give it a try you writers out there.
Hot! I tried out Amazon’s new Pre-Order feature. It was very easy for me to use and I put First Encounter up on it for pre-order. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MW8AYOK Release date is scheduled for September 18th.

My author friend Selena Laurence is getting ready to release several books over the next two or three months. In celebration of that, she’s promoting two of her previous books, A Lush Betrayal and Camouflaged. She’s an author of Edgy Contemporary Romance, and knows how to make those stories hot and sassy. Both books have been discounted for this promotion. Hurry to take advantage of it.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know if you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.
I have an in depth interview on my Smashwords Author page. You can read it here. Don’t see information about me you’d like to know? Leave me your question in my comments and I’ll try to answer it.
Revolution: A Gulliver Station Story released August 1st! I’m pretty excited about it. Apple (iTunes) and Barnes and Noble now have it up on their sites. You can buy at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

Time is Flying

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Immature Gala Apple

Immature Gala Apple by Connie Cockrell

No rain since the last Monday blog post. It’s been a very disappointing monsoon season to be sure. The lakes and reservoirs are at fifty percent capacity or less, making everyone in Arizona very nervous. I’ve had to water my garden every other day, fruit trees included. I picked my 6 peaches a few days ago. Yummy! I have 5 Gala apples on the tree. The late April frost and snow killed most of the buds on both trees so I only have those few. No pears at all, which makes me sad. Maybe I’ll have more fruit next year. Anyway, I spoke with a farmer at the Farmer’s Market. He told me Gala’s mature mid to late fall. So in the picture above, those apples may actually double in size in the next four to six weeks.
The Northern Gila County fair is in less than a month. The fair book has been proof read and sent to the printer to publish and I continue to update the website, www.NorthernGilaCountyFair.com, to add information concerning all of the activities, attractions and entertainment. What’s your favorite event or activity at your county fair?
I am editing the first book in my Brown Rain series. The working title is The Beginning, which to be frank, is sort of lame. Would you like to help me name this novelette? Click on the link below to sign up for my newsletter by the 16th of August and I’ll send you a PDF copy of the rough draft of the story for you to read. Then you can go to my blog and leave a comment on this post with your Title suggestion.
Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.

I have an in depth interview on my Smashwords Author page. You can read it here. Don’t see information about me you’d like to know? Leave me your question in my comments and I’ll try to answer it.
Revolution: A Gulliver Station Story released August 1st! I’m pretty excited about it. Apple (iTunes) and Barnes and Noble now have it up on their sites. You can buy at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

Fun Times In August

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Revolution: last book in the Gulliver Station Cover Reveal by Connie Cockrell

Revolution: last book in the Gulliver Station Cover Reveal by Connie Cockrell

My friend Selena Laurence is releasing her new book, Buried, today. A picture of her book cover is below. You can find it at:
B&N –> http://bit.ly/1qXpeyt
iTunes –> http://bit.ly/1ra0NeJ
Goodreads –> http://bit.ly/1kQkPpw
#JuanAndBeth — with Selena Laurence.

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We had a wonderful rainy thunderstorm on Saturday. The air cooled down, the rain fell, the plants became very happy. Yay for rain!
Well I completed Revolution’s formatting and put it up on Amazon, Kindle, Kobo, CreateSpace and Smashwords. I’m very excited. I have a good deal for you if you’re a subscriber to my newsletter. Want to get on it? Sign up in the next five days and I’ll get you in on it too!
The Northern Gila County fair is in a month. We’ve been working with the printer to publish the Fair books and I’ve been updating the website, www.NorthernGilaCountyFair.com, to correct out of date information. The site is still a work in progress but at least the information is correct. LOL! Do you attend your local county fair? What do you like the best about it?
Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.
I have an in depth interview on my Smashwords Author page. You can read it here. Don’t see information about me you’d like to know? Leave me your question in my comments and I’ll try to answer it.
Revolution: A Gulliver Station Story released August 1st! I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

End of Camp NaNo

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Picture by Randy Cockrell

Picture by Randy Cockrell

Picture by Randy Cockrell

Picture by Randy Cockrell

The last of the summer concert series was held on Saturday here in beautiful central Arizona. Attendance was spotty because we had a thunderstorm roll in. There wasn’t much rain but the sky was full of lightning flashing through the clouds. Exhilerating.
The hornworms have arrived. You can see a picture my husband shot of one medium sized guy eating my green tomato. He also took a picture of hot peppers and my butternut squash. I trained one of the squash vines up a trellis so the squashes are hanging down, away from the pill bugs which like to eat anything that’s in contact with the soil.
July’s Camp NaNo is complete for me. I told you already about the 7K short story and the first of two novelettes for my new Brown Rain series. The second novelette, I call The Downtrodden, finished at less than 20K. Not a problem. I wrote a +2K short story and I went over the 50K mark for NaNo. Toss the confetti, I completed the challenge. The 7K short story, Partners, was written for an anthology. I edited it over the course of July and sent it off to the anthology last week. I’m crossing my fingers that it gets accepted.
Hubby finished his edits of Revolution and gave them back to me. I’m working on those edits now. With luck I can get the book formatted and out at least on Amazon by the end of this week.
I went ahead and signed up for the Goodreads Ask the Author. Have a question? That’s a good place to ask it.
Thanks for stopping by my blog today.
Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know you’d like to be a reviewer on Goodreads or the e-tailer site of your choice.
I have an in depth interview on my Smashwords Author page. You can read it here. Don’t see information about me you’d like to know? Leave me your question in my comments and I’ll try to answer it.
Hard Choices: A Gulliver Station Story released May17th! I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

Mid-Month Update for July

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Horn Worm in the Tomatoes by Randy Cockrell

Horn Worm in the Tomatoes by Randy Cockrell

I cannot believe it’s the middle of the month already. July is a busy month and I guess that’s why it’s going so fast.

Fourth of July was pretty much rained out here in Payson. The town held the fireworks but very few people were left to watch them fire off in the rain.

The garden has been going like blockbusters. I’m harvesting blackberries, swiss chard, herbs, and sungold cherry tomatoes. The other tomato plants are producing but they’re all still green. There is no sign of hornworms yet, which makes me thankful. They get as big as my forefinger and can eat a tomato plant to just stem in no time flat. This is the time of year they show up so I’ve been carefully examining the plants every time I water. Unfortunately, they look exactly like a tomato leaf so they’re tough to spot. Other plants in the garden, hot and sweet peppers, cantaloupe, summer squash, butternut squash, peas, and green and yellow beans. The cantaloupe have, so far, produced two small ‘lopes but the pill bugs are eating them before they are even close to ripe. I don’t generally like to use bug killer but if I don’t, there won’t be any cantaloupe for me. The picture at the top of the page is of a hornworm, just in case you’ve never seen one before. It looks like an alien, doesn’t it?

July’s Camp NaNo is proceeding nicely. I have a 7K short story done and yesterday I completed the first of two novelettes for my new Brown Rain series. The novelette, titled The Beginning, finished at 21K words in the first draft which puts it in the novella category. I don’t mind. Longer is nearly always better in my opinion. I’ll start the second one today and continue my march toward the 50K NaNo goal for the month. I’m at 28K, past the word mid-point with time to spare.

I’m 18 chapters into the semi-final revision of Revolution, a little over half way done. I’ll hand it off to one more editor, my hubby, for a final look see then one last edit before formatting for release. Yes, the editing, rewriting process takes longer than the 1st draft writing. Be patient, it’s on its way.

The Goodreads site offers a Question the Author option. What do you think, are there questions you’d like to ask and no place to ask them? Would you be interested if I signed up for that on the Goodreads site?

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.

Like any author, my books sell based on reviews. Would you be interested in getting a free copy to review for me? Go to the button on the right side of the blog or go to my Newsletter tab to sign up. Or sign up here. Use Control, Click to access the link. Let me know you’d like to be a reviewer on the e-tailer or Goodreads site of your choice.

I have an in depth interview on my Smashwords Author page. You can read it here. Don’t see information about me you’d like to know? Leave me your question in my comments and I’ll try to answer it.

Hard Choices: A Gulliver Station Story released May17th! I’m pretty excited about it. You can buy at: Apple, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or Smashwords today!

Flash Fiction Friday: Where Do Babies Come From

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Betty holding a leaf on the patio. Photo by Randy Cockrell

Betty holding a leaf on the patio. Photo by Randy Cockrell

Last December I did a writing exercise where I was not to say who was doing the talking, in other words, write a short story with no dialog tags, or other ‘stage’ direction. I thought it came out pretty well but in the interest of easier reading, I’ve added dialog tags and other emotional direction.

Where Do Babies Come From

I was dashing around the kitchen in the usual after work way getting chicken ready for dinner when my daughter, Brittany, looked up from her coloring book at the kitchen table. “Amanda says babies come from mommy’s tummy’s. Is that true?”

The plate of chicken nearly slipped out of my hands. Amanda is a cute little girl but her parents keep her a little too well informed. I swallowed. “Well, that is true.”

Her favorite red-orange crayon hovered over the coloring book page. “How do they get in a mommy’s tummy?”

Now? I’m having this conversation now with a seven year old? I glanced at the clock; my husband wasn’t going to be home for at least another half hour.  “Well. Um, first; mommy’s and daddy’s fall in love.”

Her grey-blue eyes drilled into me. “And then they get a baby?”

I started to sweat. “No, not exactly.” I put the plate of chicken thighs down, washed my hands then walked over to the table. “Mommy’s and Daddy’s love each other. Then, when they think the time is right, when they have a lot of love, so much love that they have extra, then they make a baby.”

She nodded, her little face clearly rolling that information around in her head. “Do they use modeling clay? We made little people in art class out of modeling clay.”

“Noooo, not exactly.” Under my breath I muttered, “I should have bought that, How a Baby is Born, book.”

“What? You need a book to make babies?”

Why can she hear that and not hear me when I tell her it’s time for bed? “Uh, yes. I can show you pictures. How’s that? I’ll get a book that tells you all about how babies are born.”

She shrugged. “OK. Can I have a cookie?”

 

The End

302 Words

Find more of the Forward Motion Flash Friday Group here: http://www.fmwriters.com/flash.html