Snow Drifts

A big one-snow and wind with a blizzard predicted. Began yesterday, snowed through the night and a bit more this morning. Word is that many homes are without power. Travelers on their way to and from the airport have been stranded in trains since 1:00 am without food, water or heat, railroads and planes cancelled. Looks like winter and a tough one is here. It’s a comfort food day-tomato soup sprinkled with basil and cheese sandwiches. Tonight-ravioli with marinara sauce.

I think of a bread and butter job I worked several years ago when we were hit by a major storm. An intimate apparel show-one piece of the lingerie cost more than I paid for my entire undergarment wardrobe in a year-it took place in a small boutique hotel on the east side of Manhattan. That week, Mother Nature sent snow, snow and more snow. Many of the exhibitors never made it into the city and many never received their merchandise which was held up at the airports unable to be delivered. Buyers were stranded too except for a handful that had arrived early and werre staying at the hotel. We (the staff)managed to arrive through the wonders of the New York Subway system although we waded through piles of snow to arrive, leave and find an open sandwich place to buy lunch. but the show went on.

We did have an unexpected group who were dying to peek at the models in the show. A rugby team, down from Canada, was stranded and they thought it would be a good way to while away the hours. The owner of the show and the models thought otherwise. I’ll never forget the sight of our boss, all 5′ of her tackling an enormous player as he tried to sneal in the door.

For more about me, please visit http://www.elisewarner.com My cozy mystery titled Scene Stealer is available at http://www.barnesandnoble.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.borders.com, http://www.carinapress.com
and wherever eBooks are sold. An audio version may be obtaines at http://www.audible.com

Behind in my Blogging

Just getting over the worst cold since childhood. My blog was severly neglected. All my energy went into thinking about my novel to be and a new blog Mystery authors that are published by Carina have begun.

The title of our group is Not Your Usual Suspects because we write cozy, romace, paranormal, suspense and a wide range affiliated with the genre.

We launched yesterday with Julie Moffet opening for the group and today’s post was written by Marcelle Dube who offered a French-Canadian recipe to go with her warm holiday greetings.

I’m set for Sunday, December 19 and I hope all of you will join all of us as we talk about mystery, writing and life.

Our address is http://notyouruusualsuspects.blogspot.com

If you’d like to know more about me, log on to http://www.elisewarner.com

My cozy eBook titled Scene Stealer is available at http://www.barnesandnoble.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.borders.com, http://www.carinapress.com
and wherver eBooks are sold. An audio version has been produced by http://www.audible.com

Introducing Author Jenny Schwartz

Welcome Jenny:
It’s a pleasure having you here. W e look forward to your sharing your thoughts on writing.

“Write what you know” is an oft-repeated piece of writing wisdom. But I don’t believe it. Passion is far more important. If you’re passionate about what you’re writing, it strengthens your commitment to the long, lonely process and it shares the energy of your enthusiasm with your readers.
When I started writing “Angel Thief” I knew my heroine had to be an archivist. I’m passionate about the importance of knowledge. Lost knowledge makes me want to scream. I shudder to think of the ancient Library of Alexandria burning.
Studying sociology probably impacted my reverence for knowledge. I kept hearing the Foucauldian “truth” that knowledge IS power and power, knowledge. When we lose knowledge, we lose something of who we could have been.
So I created Sara, my angel archivist, who sees her role as “the Indiana Jones of data recovery”. At the moment when a document (and its knowledge) will be destroyed and lost forever to the species who created it, she dashes in and rescues it. I’d like to imagine that the lost works of the ancient world exist in a heavenly archive.
That’s the beauty of writing fiction. You can take your passion for an issue, explore it, share it, and finally, give it a happy ending. Because in my fiction (whether reading or writing), I insist on a happy ending.
Thanks]
Angel Thief, published by Carina Press
http://bit.ly/AngThief

She’s breaking the rules. Again.

An archivist in the heavenly library, Sara must follow protocol when it comes to curating the knowledge of the universe. But “liberating” an ancient text from the collection of a human—an Australian drug lord—could save a boy’s life. Sara has no way of knowing that one of the man’s other treasures is a sexy-as-sin djinni, bound by a wish to guard the estate.

He’s only following orders.

Filip is compelled to turn over intruders, even celestial ones, to his master. When he catches Sara in the library, he isn’t above indulging in some sensual kisses with her, or using her to trick the mobster into wasting a wish. It’s what he must do to preserve his facade of freedom and protect his heart.

But the kidnapping of the drug lord’s daughter forces Sara and Filip to work together—bringing out the hero that lurks within the soul of the djinni, and the passion within the angel.

***
You can find Jenny:
at her website http://www.authorjennyschwartz.com/
blogging http://www.acquiring-magic.blogspot.com/
or on Twitter @Jenny_Schwartz http://twitter.com/jenny_schwartz

YOu will also gind Jenny’s eBook at http://www.barnesandnoble.com, http://www.amazon.com and http://www.borders.com and wherever eBooks are sold

Guest Blogger

Hello everyone:

I’m guest blogging onPatricia Prestion’s blog today.

http://www.patricia-preston.blogspot.com

Blogging about where I found the characters, the sights, sounds and smells of New York that led to my eBook Scene Stealer

Please drop by and say hello.

Four Disasterous Dinners

DISASTEROUS DINNERS

Thanksgiving will be here soon. My favorite holiday and I remember the first dinner I made when I became a newlywed. Parents, hubby’s and mine, gathered in the dining end of the living room and hubby carried the beautifully browned bird to the table. I had been worried about my mother-in-laws opinion of my cooking. She had been cooking and baking since she was twelve when her mother passed away and she became the cook for her father, two working older brothers and a younger sister; a job at which she excelled.
My hubby flourished the knife, stuck the two-pronged fork (a set given as a wedding present) into our first turkey and began to carve. Halfway through dinner I realized I had never removed the giblets or the neck. They were still in the little bag stuck in the cavity. Fortune smiled-no one noticed.
The second misadventure happened when my hubby invited long-time friends from his dance class to dinner. It was spring and asparagus beckoned. I trimmed the stalks and rinsed but not enough-the sand remained. Ignored by all. It took a few years and many more dance classes before that dinner was mentioned. Hey-that’s what friends are for and it said dancers have iron stomachs.
Friday-in the days when Catholics just permitted fish-no meat allowed I invited two close friends for dinner and hubby spent hours extracting the meat from lobsters. I made a delectable salad and placed the bowl in the fridge. A few hours before dinner – horror of horrors – I opened the door of the fridge and placed a bottle of white wine on the same shelf. The bowl of lobster slid out of the fridge and smashed in fragments. Lobster, mayonnaise, celery and glass all lay in a shiny, glop of a mess on the kitchen floor. My poor guests had tuna fish that night.
Then there is the tale of Lasagna. Vegetable Lasagna with Marinara sauce – baked ahead and frozen. Misreading the directions, I baked the dish for one hour and served. Still frozen. I checked the directions. When frozen-bake for two hours.
Forget about my cooking and learn more about my writing – please log on to http://www.elisewarner.com My cozy, mystery eBook titled Scene Stealer is available at http://www.barnesandnoble.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.borders.com, http://www.carinapress.com

And wherever eBooks are sold. An audio version has been produced and is available through http://www.audible.com

A Link to Audio

Now Scene Stealer is available on audio. Produced by audible.com
My cozy mystery is now available not only as an eBook but in android an iPod. Exciting for me. My amateur detective Augusta Weidenmaier would be pleased. The young kidnapped boy, Kevin Corcoran would take it for granted. He’s grown up with all the marvels of the internet, Facebook and Twitter, iPhones and iPads and the wonders of tomorrow. To learn more about me, please log on to http://www.elisewarner.com, twitter.com/elisewarner and facebook.com/elisewarnerb Te eBook version of Scene Stealer is available at http://www.barnesandnoble.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.borders.com and http://www.carinapress.com

The Ghost of David Belasco

Went to see a preview at the Belasco Theatre yesterday of a new Lincoln Center Theatre Production. The musical is based on Pedro Amodovar’s film Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. David Belasco, a colorful dramatist, producer, actor, director and scenic designer who excelled in amazing and brilliant stage designs, originally opened the theatre known as the Stuyvesant in 1907. Designed by George Keister an architect who also designed the Astor, Earl Carrol, George M. Cohen and Selwyn Theatres, it was considered a hi-tech sensation-the light board had sixty-five dimmers, a stage set that worked on an elevator, studios and a private elevator to Belasco’s private apartment The theatre was renamed the Belasco by Belasco in 1910.
Known as “The Bishop of Broadway,” because of the clerical attire he habitually wore despite having a reputation as a “Ladies Man,” Belasco died in 1931. He left a legacy of hit plays and musicals; producers such as Katherine Cornell and the Group Theatre who leased the theatre continued to produce shows he would proudly have prresented in his theatre. Plays appearing on his stage have won the Pulitzer Prize and the New York Drama Critics Award and many an actor has won the prestigious Tony,
Many actors and members of stage crews believe Belasco’s ghost haunts the theatre. On opening nights, he is sometimes seen sitting in a box seat. Though the private elevator hasn’t been in service for years, the creak of chains in often heard.
The theatre was refurbished before the run of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown and it is a fabulous sight to behold. The ceiling is bejeweled with a mosaic of lights, the walls gleam with polished wood. It’s a fitting home for the musical with its superb multi-talented cast and spectacular scenic effects. I have no trouble believing that Belasco will be in his box seat on opening night and I’m sure the “Bishop” will approve.
For more info about me, please log on to http://www.elisewarner.com Scene Stealer, my mystery is avaialbe as an eBook from http://www.carinaprress.com,
http://www.barnesandnoble.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.borders.com and wherever eBooks are sold. An audio version is available at http://www.audible.com

Scene Stealer Audio Version

Today is a red letter day for me. October 15-the day that Scene Stealer is released in an audio version by http://www.audible.com I look forward to hearing the book read. I’m sure my characters are looking forward to it too. Scene Stealer is available (eBook version) is available at carinapress.com
barnesandnoble.com, amazon.com, borders.com and wherever eBooks are sold

Housework

I will do almost anything to keep from cleaning. Dusting, using the vacuum cleaner, washing the floors, sinks, and toilets. And I can just about sew on a button-my grandmother saved me from flunking sewing class in school. Cooking is fun and sometimes a way to relax but I want to spend my time writing. A mystery, a non-fiction article and a blog.
Walking, for me, lends itself to ideas and reading stimulates. Theatre and museums and dinner in a lovely, comfortable restaurant are my favorite ways to spend leisure time. Travel is exciting and opens my mind to new ideas, new foods, lives that are different from mine and yet-the same in so many ways.
I caught the travel bug at an early age and have never stopped wanting to travel. So many stories Is it inspiration? Perhaps it’s the adventure.
For more information about me: Please log on to http://www.elisewarner.com

SCENE STEALER, my mystery is available at http://www.barnesandnoble.com, http://www.amazon.com, http://www.borders.com, http://www.carinaprress.com
and wheerever eBooks are sold

SHY

“Shy, I confess it, I’m shy…” that song from Once Upon a Mattress seemed to have been written about me. But that was before I began writing and a play I wrote was chosen by Theatre Guinevere, in New York City, as an entrant in a play contest. We, the authors, would all read our plays in a rehearsal room to a critic who would choose the top three plays. The prize-a staged reading.
I sat in front of an audience consisting of friends, family, budding playwrights and the other competitors. I read the lines; hoping my nerves wouldn’t show. Stage directions were read by a friend and I learned never to have stage directions read at a reading. Find another way. Then miracle of miracles, I was one of the winners.
The next step was finding professional actors-who were willing to work without pay. An ad was place in Backstage, a theatrical newspaper; the evening we held auditions we arrived to find actors had filled the room and lined the staircase.
I was used to auditioning as a singer and an actress; after I became a stage manager, I knew how to call other performers to read for directors, conductors and choreographers. I knew how to cheer for performers and how to console but nothing prepared me for making the hard decisions myself.
We chose the actors we wanted to stay and read for the parts in our plays-typecasting-choosing by age, height, weight, appearance and instinct. I chose three young girls to stay and read for my ingénue. The first was terrible, just plain terrible.
“Thank you,” I said.
She pretended not to hear.
“Thank you,” a bit louder. Would nothing stop this…this creature who was creating havoc with my lines? The lines I had spent hour after hour writing and revising?
I rose from my chair, walked up front and shouted in her ear. “Thank you!” I no longer felt shy. The third actress to read, made me smile, made me laugh and was perfect. Absolutely perfect.
On to the men and here I made a dreadful mistake. The actor I chose looked the part, he read the lines fairly well and he told me he could sing. I hadn’t written a musical but the actor needed to look as if he could dance, have a mediocre voice and hold a tune for a chorus or two. I made the mistake of taking the actor at his word-I should have known better-and after the first rehearsal, despite his plea, had to let him go.
I had never-is the right word fired-anyone before? And it was a part in a staged reading that didn’t pay a cent. I felt guilty. I felt tough. I knew my first duty was to my play. And I knew I would never be shy again.

P.S. I got up the nerve to ask a marvelous actor I had worked with on the road if he would do the reading and he agreed. We won the prize – a small statue called, “The Guinny” the play received several staged readings with other companies but as yet hasn’t been produced.

FOR MORE INFO ABOUT ME, PLEASE LOG ON TO http://www.elisewarner.com MY MYSTERY TITLED SCENE STEALER MAY BE PURCHSED AT www,barnesandnoble.com, wwwamazon.com, http://www.borders.com, http://www.carinapress.com
and wherever eBooks are sold an audio versiion will be released by http://www.audible.com on October 15