Ye banks and braes o’ bonie Doon,
How can ye bloom sae fresh and fair?
How can ye chant, ye little birds,
And I sae weary fu’ o’ care!
Thou’ll break my heart, thou warbling bird,
That wantons thro’ the flowering thorn:
Thou minds me o’ departed joys,
Departed never to return …
It’s the Great Scot’s birthday. Robert Burns born January 25, 1759. A poor farmer’s son with little formal education, fell in love, was an idiot when his girlfriend got pregnant but married her later on his own accord. He published his first collection of poems in 1783. Some of you know his work but don’t realize it. At the strike of midnight on the last night of the year you sing or at may hear “For Auld Lang Syne”.
A message from our friend and one of my favorite people, Author Ritu Bhathal!
Firstly, let me apologise for not posting for..[a while].
What can I say…
Being a full-time teacher in management, having recently been through the OFSTED debacle (we got Good, so I’m not complaining, but still, STRESS!), on top of being mum to two teens at critical points in their lives and development, as well as wife and daughter… yadda yadda… well, put it this way, it leaves little time for the creative side of me.
Still, I have news and lots of it!
Over the summer, I finally completed the manuscript for my second book, which will be book two in the Rishtay Series, following on from Marriage Unarranged.
It was sent off to several readers, my editor and my publisher, and though tweaks are still happening, we have a release date of 1st June 2023 to coincide with PRIDE month!
We also have a COVER REVEAL for this next offering, entitled Straight As A Jalebi!
Aaaand… here is the cover! I’m a little bit in love with it. I hope you like it, too!
Here is a micro blurb to whet your appetites:
Who knew that an innocent trip to India in the year 2000 would have such an impact on his life? Sunny had only gone as a chaperone for his sister and her best friend and to attend to a few business matters while out there. He ends up with a deal that will change the shape of his professional future and possibly his personal one, too. But how would he be able to explain that to his family, who are gearing up to get him married off?
I am so excited about this one, but nervous, too, as some of the subject matter is out of my direct experience. This is why I have found a couple of sensitivity readers to ensure I have done the story justice.
The year 2000 and Aashi’s life was all set. New Millennium, exciting beginnings, new life. Or so she thought.
Like in the Bollywood films, Ravi would woo her, charm her family and they’d get married and live happily ever after.
But then Aashi found the empty condom box…
Putting her ex-fiancé and her innocence behind her, Aashi embarks upon an enlightening journey to another country, where vibrant memories are created and unforgettable friendships forged.
Old images erased, new beginnings to explore.
And how can she forget the handsome stranger she meets? A stranger who’s hiding something…
Ritu Bhathal is many things. Award winning Blogger. Author of a book of Poetry. Author of one full length published novel. One more book completed and ready for publishing. All of that is the easy part of her life. The hard part is too exhausting for me to list. ~Ronovan
Check out Ritu’s author site at https://ritubhathal.com/ to see the many ways to follow her on social media.
Mark the date. May 15th, 2023 for that June 1st release date. ~Ronovan
Clarence Holm focuses his entries on family, friends and a little business. Clarence recently retired from a full-time position in marketing and sales for an insurance whole seller. His interests include writing about genealogy and the history surrounding it.
As an avowed couch potato, what little time he has off the pillows is devoted to a few hobbies including, computers, electronics, woodworking and day dreaming. He is married and the father of four daughters, all old enough to realize dad doesn’t have all the answers.
He is originally from Valley City, North Dakota where his parents tried (and failed) in farming. Luckily his parents did succeed in other careers including mechanics and teaching, allowing the family to move off the farm.
A college graduate with a firm grip on what he didn’t want to do; Clarence has managed electronic stores, restaurants, and security departments. In 1989, he joined his brother and established one of the first groups of independent insurance agent clusters. From that point on, Clarence has not done anything he considers work.
Courtesy of About Clarence at Prairie Chat, the blog.
His offering for this weeks challenge. Click the Haiku for his site and the image version to “like”. Thank you, Clarence for your devoted participation.
Please Tweet, ReBlog, and share this post however you like to give Clarence some publicity and appreciation.
Much Respect-Much Love
Ronovan
Ronovan is an author, and blogger who shares his life as an amnesiac and Chronic Pain sufferer though his blog RonovanWrites.WordPress.com. His love of poetry, authors and community through his online world has lead to a growing Weekly Haiku Challenge and the creation of a site dedicated to book reviews, interviews and author resources known as LitWorldInterviews.WordPress.com.
RW: Allison, I have to say I am disappointed in you. You lied to me. Okay you didn’t lie to me, I asked why Long & Luxe, and right now your answer IS what it means, but you started your site as a fashion tips site . . . come on . . . what was the real original meaning to Long & Luxe?
ALLISON: You got me! So my original reason for L&L is kind of similar but more fashion angle – ready? My favorite song of ALL TIME is Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress by the Hollies – my favorite thing to wear is long flowing hair and a long maxi dress so luxe! Luxe to me was and is always about comfort – that is the ultimate luxury.
SET UP ALERT!!!
*****RW: Perfect. This just shows how things mature and change over time, even a site now matures into something more than we thought it would be. I set Allison up for that question because I recalled that when we first met she said something about it had to do something with something from her earlier days. So yes, Allison Marie, I gotcha on this one! And you can all hear the song at the bottom of the screen and now you know why I have the slide show above today rather than yesterday.*****
RW: We share a common bond in that we don’t write or blog to gain followers. I personally think of everyone that ends up clicking to follow my blog as Finding a new Friend. To me it’s more of a support thing than a following thing. What is your own personal philosophy of blogging?
ALLISON: I know just what you mean. If you are up for the lengthy version of my answer on this question do feel free to check out my 25 Tips On Beginning A Blog That No One Else Will Tell You. It’s not only tips for beginners but also my blogging philosophy in general. For the quick and dirty summary, I offer you this quote from the article: “Don’t write for numbers. Numbers are OK left alone. Write for people. Write for people because people don’t want to be alone.” In a nutshell, that’s what always brings me back home.
RW: I’ve found that many that do have the ability to care deep have been hurt deep.
Where does your deep heart come from? Is there a history?
ALLISON: You know, I’m really not sure where my deep heart comes from. I was always a sensitive, empathetic, introverted type and studied psychology because I have always been very interested in people, why they think and feel as they do, what choices they make, and what philosophies they adopt as their own and why. I do think I love big and I hurt big and it just comes naturally. A friend of mine and I talk about being ‘empaths’ or people who feel what others are feeling. I suppose a lot of my inner conviction to follow my heart comes from my mom, who died eight years ago very young. The experience of seeing my mom go through tremendous physical trauma to fight her cancer, and then to go through dealing with her death, has taught me that nothing is guaranteed in this life. It’s up to us to love deep and spread love wide in the time we are here. It’s the only thing that really matters.
RW: What tips do you have for someone to be able to keep blogging? For example do you have burnout tips?
ALLISON: Well, for sure my 25 Tips are my best gems so far. As for burnout I would say ask yourself why you got started in the first place and go from there. Maybe you need to go in a new direction? Maybe you need to post less often? What is so important to you that you couldn’t go another day without sharing – write and publish about that. I would also say that the more authentic your writing and connecting, the more likely you are to want to stick around. It becomes part of who you are, your way of sharing – of giving and receiving.
RW: How is the family with all of your blogging?
ALLISON: My husband is thrilled that I found blogging. I think I’m kind of a pain in the ass when I don’t have a creative outlet and this one seems to suit me quite well. The rest of the family doesn’t really get that involved. My blog isn’t for everyone and that’s totally ok with me. I think it should be that way – if you are writing from your soul, some people will groove with that and some won’t. It’s your job to stay true to you. It’s sort of a good life lesson as well.
RW: Where does the hippy chick come from?
ALLISON: My mom, I think! It’s so funny you say that because in all honesty I don’t know why I connect to the peace, love and grooviness vibe but it shows up in my world all the time. I love the music and clothing of that time and I love the peaceful revolutionary mindset of possibility and change. I have been channeling my mom’s spirit more and more lately and from what I understand she was quite an earth angel back in the day. I believe that love and peace can change the world. There’s a freedom of spirit there that – you guessed it – I dig. We are going through a time of global awakening and people are looking to come back to center, through meditation and mindfulness and a re-evaluation of our priorities. We know as a species that we need to change in some fundamental ways if we want to protect our precious lives and our planet. Greed will not get us there – love will. That is why I think my old soul always finds its way back to a peaceful revolutionary place.
RW: What is your favorite scent?
ALLISON: The beach. There’s no way to bottle it – you’ve got to sit in the sand and breathe with the wind and the salt spray and the waves.
RW: What is your favorite beverage?
ALLISON: A crisp, lemongrassy Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand
RW: What is your favorite word and why?
ALLISON: LOVE. Because it’s everything.
I doubt anyone was surprised with that last answer. Even though I had never asked her before, when that word came back to me, it was no surprise at all. I want to thank Allison for the interview and those great answers that turned some simple questions into what I think will be some life eye openers for some who read this interview series.
ronovanwrites 