• Anthology,  Contemporary

    Opposities Attract? @vickibatman #RLFblog

    Opposites Attract?

    I come from a family of four girly girls, and my other half comes
    from four rough and tumble boys. We have two boys. So yes, the testosterone gets
    thick at my house!
    Running out and doing the football thing? Not so much.
    Running to the antique mall? Yipee. My men would rather stick
    needles in their eyes. LOL
    Sometimes, there are remarkable differences between the opposite
    sexes. Check these out (mostly generalities):
      


    Man                                                                Woman
    Action adventure movie                               Romantic comedy
    Non-fiction books                                         Romance books
    Duck Dynasty                                                HGTV
    A fast sportscar, big truck                            A practical SUV
    Thick burger and fries                                   Small one with
    ten fries
    Chocolate shake                                           Water
    Spit on small cut                                            Antiseptic with bandage
    Large dog                                                      Small
    dog, cat
    Ten oz ribeye                                                 4 oz filet
    Loaded baked potato                                   Small salad
    No bread                                                        Bread
    with butter
    No dessert                                                     Anything
    sweet
    Handwash car                                               Car
    wash with vacuum
    Donuts                                                            Multi-grain
    cereal
    Surfs through TV commercials                    Reads thru TV commercials
    Loves to cook                                                Hates to cook
    See? Just from this small list, we notice the big differences.
    But isn’t being different a good thing? Would we always want
    to like the same things?
    What I notice is how the columns complement each other. Kinda
    like a balance. So no, we don’t always like the same things. I don’t always watch
    romantic comedies. I adore Indiana Jones and James Bond, but will never be a huge
    fan of Duck Dynasty! On occasion, I eat a donut and deny myself dessert, like bad
    bread pudding. And my other half loves HGTV. Go figure.
    Our characters — usually — imitate real life. Can’t you see
    a hunky guy chowing down on humongous steak, and the girl daintily eating a salad
    or smaller meal? (And all the while she is secretly thinking “I wish I could
    eat like that.”)
    Or our hero lounging on the couch with remote superglued to his
    hand while the heroine is about to blow her top because he won’t land on the romantic
    comedy? She picks up her HGTV magazine.
    Not all of these generalities are hard core true. See the cooking
    thingy, for example. My men would rather throw meat on the grill while I like to
    gather a couple of things together and “assemble” something to eat.
    The truth is if we are identical, we’d bore each other. We want
    to be interesting to our other half. To balance and complement each other. And occasionally,
    bend our other half’s way because that is what we do in a relationship. We grow,
    live, do.
    Let’s add to the list. What are some guy/girl things?

    About the Author

    Vicki Batman has three men in the house and often muses why God
    did that to her.

    Find Me Here

  • Sweet or Inspirational

    Sweet Romance: Little Birdie Who @vicikibatman #RLFblog

    Little Birdie Who…

    Vicki Batman, welcome back to Romance Lives Forever. Let’s talk about
    your book, Little Birdie Who…and Other Stories.
    Genre: Romance
    Publisher: Indie
    Cover artist: Kat Baldwin
    Length: 15 pages
    Heat rating: sweet
    Tagline: Three short, fun reads from sassy writer girl, Vicki
    Batman
    Blurb: 
    Little Birdie Who… and Other Stories includes
    “This is NOT Working” One of those days at a new job
    when nothing is going right until the new boss steps in.
    “Check Her Out” Gum: it’s a sticky situation, especially
    between the store manager and Auntie Caren when her nephew has to pay for the package
    he stole.
    “Little Birdie Who… “A new town, a new friend, a
    new beginning. Who would have thought a little bird could bring two people together?
    Buy links: http://amzn.com/B00AYOT9GS/
    What are your main characters’ names, ages, and occupations?
    Little Birdie Who… is a collection of three stories. The women
    are working girls in their twenties who meet handsome guys in their late twenties,
    thirties.

    Interview

    How did you get your start in the industry?
    Via a game, a friend challenged me. I went home and wrote eight
    chapters, then showed her. She said to keep going; so I did.
    What is the most important thing you do for your career now,
    as compared to when you first started writing?
    Promotion has become the most important thing.
    What websites do you visit daily?
    Man Theory
    Plotting Princesses
    Etsy (lol)
    Ebay
    If you could change something about your first book, what
    would it be?
    A sale! Honestly, I love the book as is and it’s pretty good.
    What do you enjoy most about writing?
    Getting an idea and running away with it.
    If you could give the younger version of yourself advice what
    would it be?
    Start writing now.
    What is your work ethic when it comes to writing?
    Every day I work out early in the morning, clean up, and sit
    my butt in the chair. I take time out for lunch and keep on going.
    How do you cope with stress as an author?
    Workout, needlepoint, sent venting emails to close galpals with
    disclaimers over it to burn after reading.
    Do things your family or friends do ever end up in a book?
    Lol. For my sake, I’ll say probably would.
    What kind of books do you read when taking a break from your
    own writing?
    Mysteries, historical romance, women’s fiction, contemporary
    romance.
    What was the proudest moment of your life so far?
    First, marrying Handsome, then the boy’s births.
    Imagine you get to go on a dream vacation, but you have only
    one hour to pack and leave, and it starts as soon as you finish this interview.
    What will you take with you and where will you go?
    My suitcase is always at standby; so I can grab and go. Really.
    The clothes, the makeup, hair stuff, kindle, Nano, and I’d go on a cruise. Any cruise.
    What is your favorite holiday and why?
    Christmas. I love the music, the special things I do with family
    and friends, the fuss.
    What good book have you read recently?
    I am so totally hooked on the mysteries by Julia Spencer Fleming.
    Where were you at midnight, on December 31st when the new
    century started?
    Celebrating with my family, my close girlfriends and their families.
    We had a fun dinner followed by watching fireworks from my dining room window.
    What do you like to do when you’re bored?
    Store Wars
    I’m rarely bored. I read and do needlepoint.
    If you were a color, what color would you be?
    Red. RED. RED!

    Please complete the sentences

    I love pizza with Canadian bacon and pineapple.
    I’m always ready for a good movie.
    When I’m alone, I read or do needlepoint.
    You’d never be able to tell, but I was terribly shy when a
    kid.
    If I had a halo it would be glittery.
    If I could go on a cruise right now, I’d say to Handsome,
    “Pack a bag. We’re outta here.”
    I can never run because I’m a terrible runner.

    Previous Books

    Twinkle Lights
    Store Wars
    Man Theory and Other Stories

    Find Me Here

  • Christmas or Holiday

    Where Inspiration Comes From @vickibatman #rlfblog

    LittleBirdie Who…

    The subtitle of this blog article is “It Just Came to Me!”
    I’m turning over the blog to Vicki Batman today for her article on inspiration
    for books.

    “It Just Came to Me!”

    I’m always asked where do you get your ideas for stories?
    Ideas can be found everywhere–a phrase, a word, a journal post,
    a look, something overheard in a restaurant, something spoken on television…lots
    of places. Something in my head goes boing! and I scribble it down.
    I began writing shorts after critiquing for a friend. I guess
    osmosis set in because the next thing I knew, I’d written a whole bunch.
    Over the years, I’ve had many stories published in magazines
    and thru e-publishers. However one magazine, Woman’s World, has eluded me. It isn’t
    because my stuff is awful. Woman’s World receives over two hundred submissions per
    week. Some of mine have been commented on; some kept for several months (the longer
    the better). And others…they were returned quickly. LOL
    So what does an author do with those stories? I’ve published
    them for free reads. Expanded into longer stories and then, sold them.
    However, when the indie wave intensified, I got a badabing!
    idea–why not put several stories together into a small book?
    So I did. My baby is born–“Little Birdie Who…and Other
    Stories.”
    Here’s a tiny blurb from each story in “Little Birdie Who”
    and what inspired that story:
    “Little Birdie Who”–a new resident helps
    her next door neighbor rescue a little bird, but who is the birdie worth keeping?
    Handsome and I actually rescued a little bird stuck on a pest
    strip in our garage.
    “Check Her Out”–Gum: it’s a sticky situation,
    especially between a store manager and Auntie Caren when her nephew has to pay for
    the package he stole.
    I know someone whose son stole gum several times when he was
    five. Her rendition (and exasperation) stayed in my head and I just had to tell
    the tale.
    “This is NOT Working”–Who knew Day One at
    a new job would begin so badly and end with possibilities?
    Who hasn’t had a horrible day at a new job, but to make it a
    first day ramped up the heroine’s awful situation. And someone near and dear said
    he forgot to turn on his computer one day, and it nearly drove him crazy.
    So if you are sitting in a café, airport lounge, or do something
    crazy, you might be overheard by a writer and become an inspiration for the next
    bestseller!
    Little Birdie Who is COMING SOON!
    Twinkle Lights

    Available Now:

    Twinkle Lights
    When the owner of a Christmas tree stand has a heart attack, a do-gooder and a reformed delinquent turned lawyer fall under the holiday spirit and staff the business. The two-some meet the everyday challenges of running the establishment and through their close association, began to care for each other. When the revenue goes missing, fingers are pointed.
    Buy link: http://is.gd/9e9Nv7

    About the Author

    Vicki Batman kicks back with a diet Coke and–hopefully–is weaving
    writing magic.

    Find Me Here