Happy Halloween!

Two of our own Lusty Linguists are participating in a Halloween Hop on Facebook today. With over 100 authors and bloggers participating, we wanted to give you the scoop so you could get in on the fun.

Roxy Mews is giving away a copy of "A Love Worth Biting For" on her page. This book originally released in October and who doesn't need some sexy hybrids to read about?

Mary Hughes is giving away a copy of "Masked Attraction: Pull of the Moon" on her page. A wizard, a shifter, and fun in closets. Definitely a great way to spend the time between trick-or-treating.




The hop is going on through tomorrow, so there's still time to enter. If you want a complete list of all the participating blogs and authors, check out Cheap Thrills Books, or just click on the first link and read the post to find the next stop.

And best of all, you can enter to win a Kindle or Amazon Gift Cards! Head to the rafflecopter entry form on Cheap Thrills Books and get your entries in. 

Good luck everyone, and happy hopping!

It's coming...

Not long now.

It's going to consume the lives of writers all over the world.

Stock up on supplies.

Just one week until NaNoWriMo.

National Novel Writing Month takes place in November every year. It's a time of literary abandon where thousands of thousands of participants are reducing sleep and increasing caffeine to pound out 50,000 words in just 30 days.

There are people that love #NaNoWriMo, there are people that hate it. I'm in the former group.

My first book exists because of a NaNoWriMo novel. And with a just a week until the kickoff of another November here is a down and dirty list of what I have to have when I start cranking out the words.

1. A group of people to sprint with.  I found this was the best part of NaNoWriMo for me. Writing with people and commiserating with other writers when my characters run amok is one of the best parts about this tradition for me. Even just having people on my buddy list to battle against was so motivating for me.

(If you want to be my buddy, you can add me on the site, HERE.)

2. Snacks. This isn't all about food. Well, not totally. Basically get your shit ready before you sit down to write. Gather drinks, snacks, music, and throw a pizza at your significant other to make sure they eat. Give yourself permission to get lost in your work and not emerge until you get your daily word count.

3. Rope for your inner editor. Tie that voice in your head up and just write. Yes, it's okay to leave mistakes in for November. That's what edits are for. ;) Getting to "The End" is the most important part of this month.

4. A sense of humor. You've got to laugh at yourself. You'll make mistakes, your characters will run away with all your carefully laid plans and toss them into the abyss. All hell will break loose. Let it. Laugh with it, and enjoy the ride. 

Tell me, are you writing a novel next month? Are you a plotter or a pantser? Do you write with all of the crazies, or laugh at all the authors pulling their hair out?

If you're writing, come do it with me. 

~Roxy

To find Roxy's books with buy links and what she has coming up next check out her website at RoxyRocksMe.com

Roxy's #CheapDate with Arbor Mist

Tonight’s cheap date is with Arbor Mist Moscato Mango Strawberry.

This wine has lots of names. Again…we have a twist off cap. I will say, this trip down cheap date lane has made my opening of wine bottles infinitely easier. Do all cheap wines have screw on caps? This could be a feature I could get behind.

The cap has a little peel off strip. Think pack of gum type situation. Grab the little tab and the wrapper comes off. Corked wines need to get behind this technology. Because I can’t tell you how many times I have stabbed myself trying to get the tin foil stuff off the top with a knife.

Yes. I know a knife is not a proper cutting tool. This is why I am reviewing CHEAP wines. (Classy fucking lady, right here. And yes. That is a partially completed wall behind me. New house woes.)

Let’s look at the label! Because wow. This one actually lists the nutrition facts. Are wines doing that now? I have never seen that before! And after looking at the sugar content on this…I never want to see it again. (19g of sugar per 8oz. YIKES!)

This also has “High Fructose Corn Syrup” listed as an ingredient behind the wine. Hold up. The first ingredient is “Moscato wine”. Then there’s a whole list of other things. Maybe that’s why this one is only 6% alcohol.

This is going to be weak.

Sniff time!

Whoa. This smells straight up like candy. I can’t tell what kind of candy. I make hubby smell it too. I can’t figure out where I’ve smelled this before but I have definitely smelled this smell.

Me: Doesn’t this smell like candy? I can’t figure out what kind, but it definitely smells like candy.

Hubby: Do you consider wine candy?

Me: Stop it. It smells like candy! What kind do you think it smells like? I can’t place it.

Hubby: I think you’re mistaking wine for candy. Do you need some chocolate?

I hit him. But now I want chocolate too. Better finish this up so I can sample some of the “Halloween” candy I’ve bought to be prepared.

I still can’t figure out what it smells like. It’s like hearing a song and being completely unable to place the name of it even though you can sing the whole damn verse.

Fruit rollups? Gummies? Maybe those peach rings I stacked on my fingers as a kid? NO! I think I’ve got it. Does anyone remember that scent that was all over the place in the 90’s? It was super sweet and we had it in lip balm, in markers, and even that scented slime? THAT’S THE SMELL!

Okay. I totally have to drink this, because I always wanted to eat those things but I was too chicken.

THE POUR

This wine has almost as many bubbles as a champagne but without the foam head. It’s damn near clear. Barely any color at all. It smells like the end of a fruity bath bomb in the glass. Still fruity but slightly off.

THE SIP

Whoa. To say this is sweet is an understatement. To say this is wine is an overstatement. This tastes like straight up sugar syrup. It’s even fairly thick. I can feel it in the back of my throat. I think my throat just got slimed.

This was not an easy drink. (Remembering the sugar content, that’s probably a good thing.)

Let’s put ice in it! I heard from a lot of people that I should have put ice in the last one. This sucker could use some dilution.

It foamed up like a soda when I put the ice in. Maybe that’s why I’m having a hard time with this one. I cut out full-sugar sodas a long time ago and they are all way too sweet for me now. Maybe if you drink soda on the regular this won’t taste so sweet to you.

But I gotta tell you, I’m damn near gagging.

With the ice it’s not as bad, but I don’t feel like I’m drinking wine. It tastes like flavored water with a lot of sugar in it. Like someone tried to stretch the Koolaid a little too far.

The flavor doesn’t match the scent. This one might be fun to put in a sherbet punch if you’re going for a dessert type thing. It just isn’t what I’m looking for when I pop the top on a bottle of wine.

I pass the glass to hubby. Who drinks full sugar soda and dislikes wine.

Me: Here. Try this. Does it taste like wine?

Hubby: No. It tastes pretty good.

Me: *Laughing* Of course you like it.

Hubby: It’s not bad at all.

Then hubby steals another drink and heads down the stairs.

THE VERDICT

I wouldn’t buy this again. But Hubby might.

One Thumbs Down, and a Non-Wine Drinker’s thumbs up. You make your own call on this one. But I’m going back to Riunite. 

So do you drink Arbor Mist? It was definitely not for me. What wine should I try next?

~Roxy

To find Roxy's books with buy links and what she has coming up next check out her website at RoxyRocksMe.com

I’m Just a Big Cat

The internet is a source of amazing information. Apparently, according to one study (http://www.cnet.com/news/scientist-cats-think-you-are-just-a-big-stupid-cat), my son’s cats think I’m just another big (and slightly stupid) cat.

I believe this. It would explain why they cuddle and take the pets sometimes and not others. Why they steal my chair. And why they lay on papers...specifically, bills and manuscripts. They’re saying “Life’s too short to work all the time. Come play with me!”

Although, with all respect to the researcher, there's another explanation. 

Cats think they're human! I have pictures to prove it.

Carpet Layer Cats: “Nap break!”

Editor Cat: “I’m sorry, these thirty pages have to go.”

Fashion Cat: “Tie one more thing on me, and you’ll see how good my pedicure is.”

Princess Cat: “Bring me my tuna!”

What about you? Do your cats think they’re human, or do they think you’re a cat?