For the First Time...

I’ve been through some pretty exciting “firsts” in my life: my first kiss, my first (and only!) wedding, buying our first house, the birth of our first child…

Firsts have a very distinctive place in our lives. They create strong memories filled with emotion, something I love as a writer. If we’re lucky, they are good emotions that enrich our relationships, encourage us to push forward, and root us in our lives and beliefs.

There have been many writing firsts for me too, experiences that have spurred on my drive to create, including finishing my first book, finalling in my first contest, making my first sale. And now…

MY FIRST OFFICIAL E-BOOK RELEASE!!!

(yep, that’s my first official cover too!)

Today, I’d love to celebrate all your wonderful firsts together! Tell me your favorite “first” memory! One commenter will win a Release Day goodie pack: Fall Festival Candle, Godiva chocolate caramel gems, and a $5 Amazon gift card.

In Snow Bound, heroine Tori Anderson has her own set of “firsts”, especially as hero Damon West sets out to fulfill some long-held fantasies. If you enjoy sexy heroes, southern heroines, unexpected stalkers, and close quarters with no way out, this novella will spice up your night!

Now available on Amazon. Coming soon to Smashwords and Barnes & Noble.

Keep up with author Dani Wade on her weekly blog: www.DaniWade.com

If you'd like to find out more about the inspiration behind hottie hero Damon West, he's showcased in today's Friday Feature Foto on The Mutual Admiration Society's blog.

The Great Snow of 2011

I'm sure you've heard folks mention the Chicago Fire of 1871 and the great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. But January 10, 2011 will long be remembered as The Big Snow (and the day Auburn won the National Championship -- War Eagle!).

Those of you from more northern climes are scratching your heads about now and wondering, "What's the deal with snow?"

You must understand this doesn't happen here often. Oh, they'll predict snow, everyone races to the grocery store for milk and bread, it doesn't snow and folks eat lots of sandwiches and drink lots of milk.

But we were surprised with a four-inch snow on Christmas Day and last week, when the local forecasters began predicting another snow event, this time much bigger, folks began the Grocery Store 500. I made sure I had enough food to eat should I be snowbound for a few days and then sat back to see if the snow would actually fall.

It did. It began Sunday about 6 PM and snowed all night and a little bit into the next day. And thus began Snowmageddon or the Snowpocalypse as folks are calling it.

Again, some of you are scratching your heads and wondering why we call it that. Aside from the rarity of it, the city doesn't have the road equipment to deal with it. I mean, why spend tax dollars for equipment that may only be used once a decade or so? They have salt and gravel to put on the roads, and they do their best, but this town shuts down when it snows. Our road system includes lots of bridges and overpasses and those freeze over quickly and are barracaded by the police (who WILL ticket you for driving around a barracade). And it's difficult to get anywhere around here without driving on those bridges and overpasses.

So, we've been effectively snowbound for a couple days because the temps have stayed around the freezing level and are supposed to drop further later this week. The little bit that melts during the day just freezes at night. You can drive on snow. You will wreck your car on ice. I have no desire to wreck my car, so I've been enjoying the view from my windows, wearing long underwear and fleece socks to stay warm and walking about at least once a day to check my mail and enjoy something we may not see again for another twelve to fifteen years.

Here are a few pictures from my photo safaris.


Sunday night




Marilyn's "official" measurement



The pasture beside my apartment complex. Isn't it beautiful in the snow?



My car and apartment in the background



Milk, sugar and vanilla. Mix well, add fresh snow and...



Snow Cream!

Got snow? Tell me about it. One commenter will win a book from my stash.

P.S. The Free Book Friday winner from last week is kayspringsteen. Congrats! Please email Smarty Pants to claim your prize.

Holy Snowstorm, Batman!

For those of you not in the south or the east, you may not be aware of the freakish weather we're having. Snow. Lots of snow (for us at least). Over four inches at my house, which is a little higher in elevation than the city, which had an official measurement of 2 inches or so. We had a white Christmas, which apparently has not occurred in Huntsville since the late sixties. The county has no snowplows, no real system in place for dealing with weather aside from closing overpasses and sending a couple dudes out with shovels and some salt.

Suffice to say, Christmas went awry for several of us. On top of blizzards, slick roads, cancelled plans, sick kids and stomach viruses, we just couldn't muster much of a blog for today. So here's a picture of my neighborhood, as taken Christmas morning.

What's the weather like in your neck of the woods? Feeling the East Coast's pain... heard there's 15 inches in Virginia...

SP

Fall has fell -- addendum

This just in from a friend in the Denver, Colorado area. It's the view from her window.

ACK!