Stress soothers – Kandy Shepherd

It’s been quite a stressful time for me in recent weeks. Our house is on the market and it was a frantic time getting it ready. Now there’s the constant pressure to keep it really tidy! 

Amidst all that I had my next story to finish for Harlequin Mills & Boon. A severe bout of the flu took me out of action for a month, which put me behind on my deadline. (I caught the flu before I’d had a chance to get vaccinated.) 

Thank heaven, I finally finished (just last night!) after long hours of BOC (butt on chair) and being very anti-social. Now I go through the nail-biting time of hoping my lovely editor likes the story...

Other stressful things have been happening too. So I thought I’d share some photos of things I love and think looking at might help to keep the blood pressure down!  (Of course that's apart from the obvious stress releases like exercise, meditation, massage, binge TV and so on!) I’d love to hear what are your favourite stress relievers.

The first thing I turn to at stressful times is chocolate, which I really, really shouldn't do. All those stress-relieving nibbles and all that sitting down leads to a new stressor – getting fatter! Deadly, my dietitian daughter warns...

Chocolate is not what I should be turning to!

I love to have flowers in the house, from my garden ideally. While my house is open for inspections I indulge in some flowers arrangements from my favourite florist. We go way back to my magazine days, and she knows just the flowers to lift my spirits!

The colours of these flowers soothe my soul! (Love the little cabbages.)

I absolutely love the water, swimming in the sea and walking along a beach are among my favourite past-times. Both these beaches are in the far northern suburbs of Sydney and easily accessible. One reason this particular LoveCat likes living DownUnder!

This is Bungan Beach on Sydney's northern beaches, view from a house for sale  (that we couldn't possibly afford, sadly!)

Too chilly (winter Down Under) for me to swim but others are braving the waters at Mona Vale, another Sydney  beach.

Who isn't cheered up by a rainbow. This one was taken on a walk around our little farm when I was seeking inspiration for a plot point. 

Stormy weather and a rainbow in the Blue Mountains

Food I haven't had to cook myself (or clear up afterwards) is a cheer-up treat. This cafe breakfast of corn fritters really hit the spot. 

That gorgeous green is a pea puree

Of course my cats always bring joy, just looking at them makes me feel happy. Stroking them and listening to them purr are proven stress releasers.

My precious kitties taking up my entire side of the bed! From left: Alfie, Tabitha, Ivy

Then there's spending time with my wonderful husband and gorgeous daughter. But they don't much like me posting pictures of them on social media!

What works for you when you need to distract yourself from stress? I'd love to read your comments!

Never on my own - Kandy Shepherd

Writing is a solitary occupation. While we authors come out to play at conferences and book launches and library talks, much of our time is spent sitting behind a computer. For hours and hours and hours we sit there, lost in creating the imaginary worlds and the imaginary people of our stories. On our own.

I’m not the kind of writer who can work in the midst of chaos. I’m also very easily distracted by other people. As deadline approaches—and I always seem to be on a frantic last-minute rush to meet it as I’m a procrastinator, but that’s a different story—my family know I need my space. Luckily, I have a room where I can close the door. I don’t want noise either. No music, just quiet. Which is why I am so often writing late at night and into the early hours of the morning.

Alfie in his favourite box - right near my desk

However, while I’m locked away in my writing cave, I’m not really alone.

Sweet Ivy always likes to be nearby

Always, with four cats, I have feline company of some kind. I haven’t shared photos of my pets for a while so here are my companions who keep me company of the quiet, uncritical kind. 

Our darling Tabitha is 18 now, and has kept me company through lots of books

That is, unless one is hungry or wants to play, or wants to go in and out the door. No need for me to set an alarm to make sure I get up and walk around at regular intervals. There is always a cat who wants in or out of a door!

Darling Cindy, my other old girl probably about 17

P.S. While I’m outside gardening at my little farm, I have not only cats but chickens for company and usually horses hanging around nearby too. But I really had to laugh at the sight of my husband weeding with one of our two pet steers, Squirt and Thimble, keeping him company. 

Thimble helping out with the gardening

The bullies are a miniature breed called Dexters but they’re not exactly tiny! This is Thimble.

Do you have an animal companion of some kind that keeps you company while you work? I’d love to read about it in the comments!

Golden oldies – Kandy Shepherd

This month I’d like to introduce you to Tabitha and Cindy, my two senior cats. I don’t like to call them “old girls” because they are still very sprightly. (I truly am a LoveCat!)

We’ve had Tabitha, age sixteen, since she was a kitten. My then seven-year-old daughter had begged us for a cat of her own and spent her life’s savings of $100 on adopting a tiny tortoiseshell kitten. She was advertised on the noticeboard in the tea room of the magazine company where I worked. 

Tabitha as we first saw her - first on the left

Daughter and kitten became immediate best friends—and sixteen years later they still share a special bond. Theoretically, I’m Tabitha’s cat-grandmother my daughter informs me. Tabitha has a very sweet, lovely nature, and is constantly on the lookout for a lap.

Tabitha at six months - in a box as always

My other golden oldie is Cindy, our lovely tabby farm cat. We don’t actually know how old Cindy is—she arrived on our veranda one dark and stormy night. 

Cindy some years ago

She had probably been dumped in the bush near our little farm in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney. But she must be at least fourteen, maybe even close to the age of Tabitha. Cindy is the most amazing animal. We call her our dog-cat as she follows us everywhere and likes to go for bush walks with us. At the same time she’s fiercely independent.

Cindy - the classic farm cat

 Sadly both our precious cats are slowing down. Both have lost weight and Tabitha is sometimes grumpy beyond the usual tortoiseshell snarkiness.

Other symptoms have lead to a diagnosis of the start of renal failure, very common in cats. It’s all to do with their origins as desert animals.

Tabitha - looking pretty good for sixteen!

So we now have two cats under a low protein feeding regime. That means expensive prescription diet cat food and constant offering of liquids. They’re both pretty good with eating the special food. But not when regular cat food is on offer to the two other three-year old cats who need regular high protein food.

This means segregated feeding, constant snatching up of forbidden foods, and adjudication of dry food disputes—with resulting grievances from all four cats. I adore them so fuss over my felines without complaint.

Cindy helping in the garden

Tabby also needs a regular laxative that tastes so good she thinks it’s a treat. The others like the smell of it too and get quite miffed when questing noses are pushed away. Heaven help me the day they learn to squeeze it from the tube…

The good news is the latest blood tests for both my seniors show a definite improvement so it’s all worth it!

I hate the thought of my precious animals getting older—just had to stop typing to help Tabitha up on to the sofa as her legs are a little stiff these days—Tabitha is around eighty in human years and Cindy not far behind her. But I figure the love and attention we give them is so worth it for the joy they give us. I got my last cats who were diagnosed with failing kidneys to the respective ages of eighteen and twenty-two—very, very old for cats! Wish me luck I can keep Tabitha and Cindy with me for some years to come yet.

What about you? Do you have an older animal you cherish? Any special care you’ve had to give them? Any advantages you see in having older pets? I’d love to hear about it—please make a comment!

My Favourite Things.....

I haven't done a My Favourite Things post for a while, so I thought I'd start with my six favourite things at the moment and then see what everyone else is 'favouriting' too.

1/ Adrian Van Ziegler - I can't get enough of this talented composer and love listening to him when I'm writing. I love Celtic music (maybe my Welsh heritage) and his music is really romantic and easy listening.

 

 

2/ The beautiful flowers my husband gave me for Valentine's Day. There's something extra special about getting flowers delivered and these arrived at my day job just in time for V Day. xx

 

 

 

3/ The hard cover version of my latest release, Three Reasons To Wed, from Harlequin Special Edition. I love the cover of this book and getting the hardcovers still gives me a thrill :)

 



 

4/ My cat. This is Candy and she's a perfect little angel (when she's not being a monster) She's a Ragdoll we've had for a few years now. And she's my shadow when I'm at my desk.

 

5/ Baby hugs! There's something extra special about baby hugs. This is my great-niece Evie. I can remember holding her mum the same way....time sure does get away. Love her gorgeous strawberry blond hair and the blue eyes.

 

 

6/ My new pink kayak! Complete with pink paddle. (Please ignore the rather large shark in the background....that is compliments of a friend with a wicked sense of humour...although, maybe I need to think about getting a bigger boat!)

 

So....what are your favorite things at the moment? Family, friends, holidays or books?

 



A peaceful Christmas to all

Happy Christmas to all the LoveCat readers and the LoveCats themselves. This is my first Christmas as a LoveCat and I'm both honoured and delighted to be part of this wonderful blog.

This year is a very quiet Christmas for me and my husband. Our daughter, our only child, is away from us for the first time in her twenty-two years. She's staying with friends in California, a long way from Sydney. They are the nicest possible people so she is in very good hands. But we miss her... 

Her cat Tabitha howled and cried outside her closed bedroom door last night. When I let her in she saw daughter wasn't there, cried some more and slunk out in misery. Of course I consoled her and she slept happily on my pillow. That I didn't have a very good sleep is beside the point, isn't it!

Fortunately we will have the company of two nieces and three great nieces on the actual day. It will be the first time for years we haven't cooked Christmas dinner, as the younger generation is taking over this year.

I'm sharing my all-time favourite Christmas photo. Three years ago my darling old cat Albert found my sweet great niece, then two, admiring our Christmas tree. He ambled over to keep her company and I quickly got this shot. It was his last Christmas, he crossed the rainbow bridge six months later aged twenty-two.
I'm spending Christmas Day with this same  lovely niece - and her hamsters!

Christmas is usually huge for us in terms of entertaining. For years we held a party on Christmas Eve and then woke up and did it all again the next day. It's quite nice to be quiet. But perversely I feel a little let down that I'm not stressing out with all that's to be done!

All over the break, I'll be working on a book due early in the new year for Harlequin Romance so won't have time to miss daughter (lie, I miss her already and she's only been gone two days!)

As a writer, Christmas is lovely for me this year with two new Christmas stories out. My novella Millionaire Under the Mistletoe is part of the wonderful LoveCats boxed set Hot Christmas Nights, seven brand-new holiday-themed romances. Also from me is my Harlequin Romance Gift-Wrapped In Her Wedding Dress which is heavily Christmas themed.

What about you? Are you celebrating your usual Christmas or doing something different this year? I'd love to read your comment! I'm giving away a free download of Hot Christmas Nights to one commentator.

Cats Who Think They're Dogs

Have you ever met a cat who thinks it's a dog? One who has a few more canine traits than feline?

The cat in The Summer of Jake, Rover, thinks she's a Jack Russell Terrier and I had a whole heap of fun writing her character. But she's not alone!

If you're not sure what I'm talking about, or you just want a chuckle, here's a little introduction to cats who think they're dogs for you:

Here's a little snippet of the moment when Jake first meets Rover at Annalise's apartment:

At that moment, Rover came bounding out from my bedroom, almost barreling over Jake as she jumped up on his leg. I think he faltered more from surprise than her cat-weight. I bent to pick her up, but she was scrabbling her paws to reach the new person.

Jake took a step back. “Is that cat on medication?”

Used to this kind of comment, I just smiled. “Rover thinks she’s a dog. A Jack Russell to be specific.”

“Ah.” Jake thought for a moment, then shrugged and reached forward to pat her. “Have you considered therapy?”

For a second, I wondered if he meant the cat or me, but then his eyes twinkled.

“No need. She’s perfectly happy as long as people treat her like a dog.” Rover turned and licked my cheek as if to reinforce my point. “She was dumped at four weeks old outside my grandmother’s house, and Nan took her in.”

“Let me guess, your grandmother had a Jack Russell who adopted the kitten?”

“Her dog Spot completely took over her care. And Nan didn’t like cats, so she treated Rover like a dog. Between the two of them, Rover didn’t stand a chance.” I snuggled my face into her black and white stripy neck, and she relaxed for a few seconds before trying to reach Jake again.

“So why’s she living with you?”

I put Rover down on the ground, and she sniffed the leg of Jake’s jeans. “When Nan died a year ago, Spot had already been gone a little while, so Rover came to live here. I’ll just give her some dog food, and we can start.”

Jake started nodding, then hesitated. “You feed her dog food? Isn’t that taking things a bit far?”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s C-A-T food,” I spelled out. “We just can’t let Rover know that.”

And because I can't resist, here's another cat who thinks she's a dog. :)

I love to hear about unusual animals - tell me the most unusual pet you've had or met. I'll give away a copy of The Summer of Jake to one commenter so they can meet Rover for themselves!

Funday on the LoveCats

.
If you've ever owned a cat you probably know how much fun a plain old cardboard box can be for them to play with!

Well... the same goes for the Big Cats!  They just need much bigger boxes!  Check this out...

Cat-Kitten Update!

Toffee
aka spare sofa cushion

As you may remember back in January I took the children to the SPCA and the Cats Protection League and we came away with not one, not two but three new cats. Two little kittens and one giant moggy.

Toffee is the shorter of the kittens, but the wider. She has a round belly and a short tail. She's very cute in a 'make-you-smile' way. The SPCA told us to have kitty bikkies always available - that the cats would self-regulate their eating habits. Toffee doesn't self-regulate. Toffee just eats and eats and eats some more. In fact, we've amended her name from Toffee to Scoffee. She likes to lie about in front of the fire and look gorgeous.

Pop on the other hand is the longer, leaner of the two - and definitely the one with the killer instincts. she's the one clawing the kitten toys to death - along with any cardboard boxes that might be lying around. Nothing beats hunting insects in Pop's world. She's incredibly fast.

Pop
Huntress-in-training

They're still great mates - playing together and curling up together. I scooter with the children to school and the two kittens bound along after us - almost to halfway there before they spot something interesting in someone else's garden.  

Toffee & Pop
Still very cute friends

They're very close to my eldest daughter in particular (the younger ones might still be a bit too enthusiastic in their cuddles!) - and spend most nights curled up on her bed. However, like many young creatures, they don't sleep through the night and around 3 every morning we hear the pair of them scampering up and down the stairs chasing each other.

And then of course, there was our older lady cat - the one that 'would have trouble finding a home'. Well, turns out there was a reason Curious would have trouble finding a home. Curious is the grumpiest cat of all time. Well, maybe I do her a disservice - she's not so much grumpy as noisy.

She has decided she prefers to live outside and only comes in for food (about five times a day). I was concerned about this as the weather is getting very cold - but she's got herself a spot under the house and when it absolutely bucketed down the other day, she came in for supper completely dry. And the fact is she doesn't want to stay inside. As soon as she's eaten she's at the door yowling and hissing (SO loud) to be let out. I figure she's having a better life than she would have done otherwise - limitless food and warmth and company should she want it (though she doesn't).

Cat dynamics are interesting. The kittens know Curious is boss - she eats first, they keep their distance. But she tolerates them - she might hiss but she doesn't lash out. There are a couple of cats on one side of us (Frankie and Tapioca) - and while Frankie might slither in to steal some food now and then, for the most part they stay away. 

Ruby
The nemesis next door.

But there is one real threat - and that's Ruby from next door. Before we got the three, Ruby believed our property was a natural extension of hers. Our back lawn was her domain. Ruby is a beautiful big black cat. Ruby is a hunter. Ruby is proud.

So is Curious.

Yes, as you can imagine, there are fireworks going off round here! Often I see them squaring off. Just yesterday Curious was in the driveway blocking the (cat-sized) hole in the fence, yowling and hissing and crouched into full on predator mode. I peeked nearer and saw Ruby sitting there on her side - mirroring the malevolence, protecting her boundary. They yowled at each other for ages. I've seen them do a lot more than yowl too -  and had to break it up with a lot of shouting and arm waving. It ended with one of them rolling off the roof of the neighbour's house which gave me a heart attack. But its true that cats always land on their feet! And I think mostly their clashes are more about show and noise than real bruises and bites.

I confess I enjoy watching those two powerful cats and I'm looking forward to seeing how our other two develop. They're such magnificent creatures!

Curious, the Furious Queen
The one and only. 

Puzzled!

by Sharon Archer




No, it's not Caturday Fun day, but I couldn't resist bringing you a puzzle! Just to look at!

I enjoy jigsaws. The mindboggling number of tiny irregular pieces and the challenge of putting them together to look - hopefully - just like the stunning picture on the top of the box. I'm a sorter (it's that inner duck-liner-upper approach!). I sort into piles - one pile of edges and one pile of "other bits" - which naturally gets broken down into sub-piles of green bits or blue bits or brown bits or white bits. I like to start by putting the edges together first so then there's a frame to help find where the other pieces go.

This works well because jigsaws are square and therefore they always have four corners! Right?

Wrong!

These days, there are shaped puzzles. A friend showed me this clever cat-shaped puzzle that she'd put together with friends. She loved it so much she's had it framed.




Titled Curious Kittens, there are cats within cats, cats in the clouds, a cat face in the branches of the tree...







In this picture, you can see that some of the interlocking pieces even fit together to make mini puzzle-cats within the larger picture.





It's fabulous and the longer I looked, the more cats I could see.

It's been years since I've done a jigsaw but this clever design had me seriously itching to have a go.

Are you jigsaw person? Have you tried one of these shaped puzzles? Do you break them up after you've done them? Or try to keep them for a while so you enjoy the fruits of your labour? Do you find them relaxing or stressful? From my research on the Internet, I believe there are even 3-D puzzles now! Have you tried one of those?

P.S. For those who can't resist the temptation, I did Google to see if I could find a link for this company, but no luck - hopefully this means they're designing more of their delightful puzzles! If it helps the puzzle is made by THE CANADIAN GROUP, Toronto.

PPS I meant to say that I'll giveaway a copy of my latest release, Bachelor Dad, Girl Next Door, to one of my commenters! Looking forward to it!

With a little Help from my Friends

Tracie's Cat Stats
Reading: Lover Avenged by J.R Ward
Listening to: Glenn Miller (would you believe - no heavy Metal)
Watching: nothing - deadline looming
Making me smile: This Blog and the people responding

Friends make the world go round. Some drift into your life for only a short time, while other stay much longer and some forever.

When I was younger I had lots of friends. The fact they were only 3 inches high, dressed in bright clothing and no one but me could see them didn’t really matter. Don’t get me wrong, I did have human friends and four legged friends too, but sometime I preferred the company of my little folk more. I would talk to them for hours, teach them things and tell them stories. Of course they all adored me and did whatever I asked them to. Looking back, I guess the writer in me was beginning to bud, though it would not fully bloom many years later.

And when my writing desire blossomed, I met two of the LoveCats—Rachel and Mel. We all belonged to the Clayton Critters group which sprung up out of the 2005 RWAus Clayton’s online conference. From the first words I read of both Rachel’s and Mel’s stories, I was in awe. These girls
could write.

Now I’m blogging here with these 6 awesome cat pals:

• Zana I don’t know much—well not yet—she’s a new friend.
• Emily I’ve met as several conference including a spectacular Nationals in San Francisco when she was nominated for 2 Rubys and I was a finalist in the Golden Heart
• Sharon and her lovely Mr Archer have been at every conference I’ve been to except last year and they were sorely missed. Their smiling faces are always a joy. When Sharon sold – I was overjoyed and we shared several celebratory emails.
• Nikki I know a little better. I can’t remember when we met. It feels like I have known her for ages. I actually screamed out loud and danced when I heard she was going to be a Harlequin Romance author. I am very impressed.
• Mel, Rachel and I have bit more history. We’ve shared good news and bad; we’ve laughed and cheered; we’ve vented and cried. We told each other the truth when it needed to be said, and supported each other if one of us was down. We used to dream and say “one day when we are all published... blah blah blah”. And now here we are, together. Old friends are a comfort and a joy. It was almost felt like selling again myself when each of them made their first sales.

What is it that you value in your friendships? Or do you have a special friend who has touched your life in a profound way?

Today's Book Giveways to one lucky commentor: The Earl’s Dilemma, Emily May (in Fate & Fortune, with A Country Miss In Hanover Square, by Anne Herries) Quills / Regency Single Father: Wife & Mother Wanted, Sharon Archer Medical Duo of Marriage Reunited: Baby on the Way, Sharon Archer, with Lucy Clark’s Bride on the Children’s Ward Medical Claiming His Bought Bride, Rachel Bailey Desire The Blackmailed Bride’s Secret Child, Rachel Bailey Desire Tonight, My Love, Tracie Sommers Spice Briefs His Housekeeper Bride, Melissa James Harlequin Romance / Sweet Tycoon’s One Night Revenge, Bronwyn Jameson Desire Prince Incognito, Linda Goodnight, including a novella, The Homecoming, Melissa James Harlequin Romance / Sweet Stone Cold Lover, Mel Teshco Ellora's Cave

Animals in Books

Rachel's CAT STATS
Reading: To Catch A Bride, Anne Gracie
Listening to: Michael Buble
Watching: Dr Who (season 4 on dvd)
Making me smile: my 8 year old nephew, Jai
Hi, I’m Rachel and I’m a cat lover. And a dog lover—yep, a huge fan of dogs. And penguins. And green tree frogs. Oh, and wallabies—I love wallabies (they visit my back yard, very cool).

I also love books. So when I find a great book with a dog or a cat or a frog or a penguin, I’m even more in love with it (though I can’t actually remember reading a romance featuring a penguin…).

Some of my favourites have been (but in no way limited to):

Tom Bradley’s Babies, by Marion Lennox (Harlequin Romance / Sweet). A playboy stuck in a storm suddenly has to deal with a woman giving birth to twins and a bloodhound giving birth to six puppies. Both females pass out afterwards from exhaustion and Tom is left caring for a heap of newborns. Fabulous, fabulous story. (Though I could just as easily have chosen Marion's one with the green tree frogs. Or the one where the border collies fall in love.)

Anyone But You, by Jennifer Crusie (originally Harlequin Love and Laughter, now reissued by HQN). In the foreword of the reissue, Jenny Crusie says people often refer to this as Fred’s Book. I can understand why. I loved Fred – he learns to jump out his apartment window and walk down the fire escape for his ablutions. And he brings the hero and heroine together. Definitely a great dog book.

Naughty Nights in the Millionaire's Mansion by Robyn Grady (Modern Extra / Presents / Sexy Sensation). The heroine owns a pet store and the gorgeous alpha hero comes in to buy a fish. Soon after, the heroine has to make an emergency call out when his fish gives him trouble - it keeps leaping from its tank, trying to commit suicide, and the poor hero is completely baffled. This was very sexy and quirky. I loved it.

His Secluded Survivor (working title) by Nikki Logan (Harlequin Romance / Sweet). This one is yet to hit the shelves (it'll be in a UK-only anthology for 2010 release), and I haven’t even read it, but it holds a special place in my heart already – it stars four dogs: Dougal, Oliver, Fergus and Jazmine. Anyone who knows me (or has visited my website) will know they’re my dogs in real life (in fact that's Dougal decorating my post on the top left). :) Nikki has immortalized them and I can’t wait to read it.

Given my love for animals in books, it’s probably no surprise that I managed to sneak in a dog or two into The Blackmailed Bride’s Secret Child. I gave my mother’s Dalmatian Misty a starring role. Well, she’s more of a minor character, but she gets to run in the park with a little boy, and the real Misty loves doing that. :)

So tell me, do you like animals in stories? And if so, what have been some of your favourites? And if you’ve read a romance that features penguins, please let me know!

I have 10 books to give away (including my first two releases and Robyn Grady's book about the hero and the fish): The Earl’s Dilemma, Emily May (in Fate & Fortune, with A Country Miss In Hanover Square, Anne Herries) Quills / Regency; Marriage Reunited: Baby on the Way, Sharon Archer Medical; Claiming His Bought Bride, Rachel Bailey Desire; The Blackmailed Bride’s Secret Child, Rachel Bailey Desire; Tonight, My Love, Tracie Sommers Spice Briefs; The Rebel King (Suddenly Royal #1), Melissa James Harlequin Romance / Sweet; His Princess in the Making (Suddenly Royal #2), Melissa James Harlequin Romance / Sweet; Naughty Nights in the Millionaire’s Mansion, Robyn Grady Modern Extra / Presents / Sexy Sensation; Back in Fortune’s Bed, Bronwyn Jameson Desire; Stone Cold Lover, Mel Teshco Ellora's Cave