Wednesday, February 26, 2014

CATS, DOGS AND FISH....

My house has turned into Wild Kingdom.

First we only had a +Cat

The cat strutted around the house acting like a PRINCESS, hence her name (Princess) and she ruled the household.

Not only did she have her owners trained to jump whenever she started to whine but she climbs all over them while they are watching TV, whining if she can't get her way and finally hiding if they left her alone for longer than what "Princess" felt was acceptable.

I finally had enough of this behavior and proclaimed that I wanted a +Dogs

This wasn't going to be easy since my dog of choice is and has always been a +Rottweiler Fans or +PitBull however they are against the law in the county I reside in so the hunt was on for a dog that caught my fancy.

Little did I know that the dog that would melt my heart would be at the local +HumaneSociety of +CharlesCounty. Mocha was a little scruffy dog who had been abandoned and needed a home. He put on quite the show for me and of course I had to take him home. It's been four months and we all love him except for Princess.

She totally ignores him; well that is what we thought until one day she decided to set her foot (paws) down and scare Mocha have to death. She came at him, standing on her back legs, paws raised high in the air and making some kind of noise that would have scared any other animal senseless but not Mocha. He sat there, un-amused and turned his back to her.

Princes thought bubble
"I will not be filmed with him"
However, the dynamics are such that now whenever Princess comes around Mocha dare not move! It's almost like she has telepathically told him to keep still and he does. Normally lying there like a slug with his eyes wide open and breathing very slowly as if not to make the "princess' angry.

This is such foolishness that now even the +FISH , yes all four of them barely swim around their tank. Secretly I think Princess has gotten on top of the fish tank and hovered over them just far enough that the KNOW they better not mess with her or she will yank them from their watery homes and eat them or at the very least let them lie on the floor flopping around like...well fish out of water.

So you see, my house has become animal kingdom and now I feel like I need a REAL dog to come in and put Princess in her place or at the very least, protect Mocha from her.


Monday, February 24, 2014

LOVE IS MURDER AND I LOVE IT

Two weeks ago I went to Love Is Murder and had the best time ever.

I got to hang out with my great friends, +Hanley Kanar and many others. Love is Murder is the best conference in the Mid-West that you can attend and it is the conference where you make life long friends.

The conference starts on a Friday and runs straight through until Sunday afternoon. We eat, laugh, sit and discuss writing, promotional ideas and best of all we enjoy a few drinks at the bar!

This is why I attend conferences. I meet people! I like to be around other authors and I think I learn more than I would by just sitting home and 'hoping' that someone notices me.

We exchange business cards and we laugh at the, sometimes, share a drink or two or three...OK, four at the most! But most of all we like to sit down with the fans that attend.

I shared my dinner table with the most interesting pair of women who come to LIM every year. They are two retired librarians and they always come to Love is Murder (LIM)

The reason? Because they feel that they can talk and be a part of the literary world without going to far from home. They leave with plenty of new books from the newcomers and they share lots of stories about their days in the library. Those two women are always a pleasure to see.

The other reason is they give out awards, voted on by the fans of the conference. This year, a good friend of mine +Christine Verstraete won the LOVEY for BEST HORROR novel of 2013.

This is her first novel and she won! She was shocked and were we all but why were we. She was up against, +Heather Graham, who is a NY Times Best Selling author! and Christine brought home the LOVEY!

So if you ever get the chance to attend a conference, check out ones close to home first. You will be in for a treat.

If you need a few ideas, here are a few but if you know of any in your area, please feel free to share

Creatures, Crimes and Creativity
Love Is Murder
Malice Domestic
Bouchercon
Thrillerfest

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

WHAT IS MY NAME

A lot of people ask me...what kind of name is B. Swangin Webster?

Normally I let them imagine whatever they want. Hey, it doesn't hurt me any for them to think it means something totally different from what it actually is.

Actually my name is actually MY NAME. Yes, B. Swangin Webster is my legal name. Well not my entire legal name but it is still my name.

I'll break it down for you.

First the letter B. That is because I was married and my legal last name began with a B and that is all I will say about that.

Secondly, Swangin (and that is pronounced SwA-gen) is my mothers maiden name. Now I know that might be hard to believe but its true. All you need to do is look on Facebook and type that name in. All of the people that come up with that name, and trust me it is not that many, are my family. Cousins, Aunts, Uncles, etc.

Third, Webster...that is my maiden name, my dad's last name. Now don't get me wrong. I like those of you that thought it meant because I was a writer I used the dictionary a lot, (hence the name WEBSTER)

Nope nothing that elaborate, it's just my name

Swangin and Webster (aka my parents)
You see, the people in this picture are Swangin and Webster. Swangin is my mom and my dad is Webster. They have encouraged me like no other when it comes to my writing. This picture was taken last night, as we celebrated my moms birthday. The FIRST word out of her mouth wasn't hello and thank you for taking me to dinner, it was 'when's the next book coming out?" That was all the thing that brought tears to my eyes. You see, my mom is losing her sight. By the end of the year she will be totally blind and she "wants to read my book before she can't see it."

Priceless is the word that I use to describe the loyalty and encouragement that I get from my parents ever day. They offered to pay all of my bills while I was working on my first novel and they have kept that offer on the table.

When I say that I love my parents and wanted to honor them by doing something for them, I couldn't think of anything better than making my author name be something that they could see.

Yes, I proudly say I am B. SWANGIN WEBSTER,  The author and even if I never make millions of dollars, I already have the most priceless gift ever.

My parents support!

Friday, February 7, 2014

.....AND SO I'M OFF

Well, not in the sense you are thinking of.  Although sometimes the voices in my head make complete sense.

This time I'm off to another conference. This is one that I started attending three years ago. Love Is Murder is held in Chicago every year.

It threw me off this year because normally it is held during the +SuperBowl 2014 but this year it is the week AFTER. If I wore pearls, I'd be clutching them right now!

So after getting my head wrapped around not being in Chicago during the Super Bowl; I had to find something to do with my Sunday. Watch the game? you say...gasp! I'm not used to being in MARYLAND during that weekend so I had to entertain myself and that went very well. But I digress.

So, this weekend I will be in Chicago, just as the +PolarVortex is leaving or still there, who knows anymore; in any case. I will be there.

Hopefully I will have the courage to go outside but that is totally dependent on how cold it is when I arrive.

Besides, the Love Is Murder conference is used to seeing me in my cute shoes and this year I am researching a murder scene for #TheStilettoStalker. All I will say is: It involves the ice machine, dragging a body and not making noise...yeah this should be interesting.

So if you are in +Chicago this weekend, anywhere near the airport and pass by a place that sells the best burger, I heard it was +RockitBurger, feel free to bring me one and chat about the murder that will be committed there.

Oh and don't forget to say hello to +Intrigue Camacho because they will take pitches for new novels and one of their authors, +Christine Verstraete is up for a LOVEY award.

Hope to see you there!