#30 Days of Gratitude - Day Seven: Pets

Over the years, we opened our home to three dogs, Whiskey, Bear, and Cody. I'm grateful for the joy those pets have brought into our lives.

Whiskey was my first dog. A boy in the 6th grade class I taught brought him in to school at lunchtime. His intent was to take the puppy around to the classrooms and tell the kids if they wanted a puppy, they had to bring a note from their parent. My friend (the one I wrote about on Friday, the one who texts) saw the puppy and said "That puppy is for Mrs. Burton." The janitor found a box and some old towels and the puppy stayed in my room for the rest of the day. By the way, all the puppies in the litter were named after alcohol.

When my husband came home from work, he said "I thought we were going to wait until school was out." We-ell, that was the plan. LOL I couldn't resist that cute, red dog.

Whiskey, we kept the name, lived with us for over 16 years. Our kids grew up with him. He was a great companion.

Our next dog was Bear, a black Lab mix. Stubborn and a runner. I wanted to name him Max but was outvoted.  When I started writing, he lay on my feet under my desk. When Hubs had to go out of town on business, Bear was a fierce defender. He lived with us for 15 years.

After 31 years of dogs, we decided that was enough. Then Son's friend had to give up one of his pets. Cody spent 2 years in the boys' college apartment, so Son knew Cody well and took her. After three years, circumstances necessitated he give up the dog, and we took her. What a well-behaved pet. She came when called. LOL She lived her last 4 years with us. I cried more for her when she was gone than I did for the other two dogs. 

So, will we get another pet? I've loved the freedom of being able to leave on vacation without having to make arrangements for the dog. Yet, I miss the companionship. Pets bring so much to our lives. That wagging tail and cheerful bark when I walked in the house always made me smile. I think another dog might be in our future.

 

  Here's info about the #30 Days of Gratitude.

Join in the fun! Here's the Form: 30 Days of Gratitude 2020 Blog Hop

Stop by Tara Tyler's blog to see who else is participating.

 

Guest: VERONICA SCOTT and Pets in Space 5 #sfr #anthology

Last week, I opened my iPad and to my delight look what I found. During the night, Pets in Space 5 had dropped in. The marvel of pre-ordering.

I've read each of the previous Pets in Space anthologies and thoroughly enjoyed them. Such diverse pets. A bat, a frog, a holographic cat, rats, and more, some out of this world.

My friend, Veronica Scott, is here to tell us a little about the anthology and her story, STAR CRUISE: RETURN VOYAGE 

From the Pets In Space® 5 Anthology by Veronica Scott

 Thanks for having me as your guest today, to talk about the fifth annual Pets In Space® scifi romance anthology and my novel in the collection! When Pauline B. Jones and I came up with the idea in 2016, we thought it would be fun to have a group of authors take the story prompt along the lines of “Lassie in space” and add a romance for the main characters. This year we have ten other authors besides ourselves in the mix and the range of pets is so wide it’s amazing.

Every year it’s a fun challenge for me to figure out my alien pet. I’m a cat person here on Earth but I’ve written a cat, an alien cross between a red panda and a tribble, an eagle, a songbird, and a small dog for the various editions of the anthology.  Some years the choice of a pet is driven by a plot I already have in mind and other years the plot arises from the development of the pet and its attributes.

This year I went into the whole process fascinated by the Afghan hound. I’d seen snippets of the big national kennel show on the news and watched an Afghan hound prance by the camera. No offense to the aficionados of this dog breed but I find them to appear a bit alien just the way they are, so the animal made a good jumping off point for a PISA pet. I decided Verlaine the Tajikka Hound would have some vaguely equine characteristics as well, like black hooves and a somewhat horselike face. Our artist did his usual fabulous job in creating Verlaine for me. (The animal just seemed to require an aristocratic name, doesn’t he?!).

I like to make my PISA story into my annual entry in my STAR CRUISE series as well, located on the interstellar luxury liner Nebula Zephyr. I enjoy revisiting some of my characters from previous STAR CRUISE stories and I feel the concept of a huge cruise ship gives me plenty of latitude for telling a variety of stories. My next challenge for 2020 was what would bring such a sizable animal onto the ship as a pet? This past year there had been so many true stories about people bringing odd animals onto airplanes as service animals and I read about someone who had a miniature horse they wanted to travel with! Since I visualize Verlaine as being about the size of a very small horse that seemed perfect to me. So he became a genuine service animal of the far future.

But who would need such an animal to support them on a trip on a big luxury liner?

Enter Gianna Nadenoft, who survived the wreck of the interstellar cruise liner Nebula Dream in my very first published scifi romance novel. She was a (precocious) child of three at the time of the events in Wreck of the Nebula Dream so I felt it was a safe assumption she’d have had post-traumatic stress symptoms of various kinds and might have needed a service animal to help her cope with life after the wreck. Now she’s determined to travel the stars to her brother’s wedding and reunite with old friends but hasn’t left her own planet in the twenty or so years since the wreck. So of course she travels with Verlaine on my new cruise ship, Nebula Zephyr. (I had to be so super careful not to mix up the names of the two ships when I was writing. Dream =destroyed, Zephyr=still sailing the stars.)

Here’s an excerpt where the hero, Trevor, meets Verlaine for the first time. He’s been sent by his captain to meet her at her home and escort her to the ship.

Gianna Nadenoft stood on the threshold, dressed in a flowing pink garment, with an animal by her side. The pair moved forward toward him in unison.

He was positive it was her, having looked at the few photos available in the historical databases Maeve had found. Her face had the same shape, although now she was an adult and her hair was still a riotous explosion of ebony black curls, held under minimal control today by a pink headband. She had a splash of paint on one cheek and sparkling green eyes.

She came to stand next to him, studying the painting as if she hadn’t been the one to create it. “I’m in a more hyper realism phase now actually.” With a smile she offered her hand, “Gianna Nadenoft.”

He introduced himself, wondering what he’d gotten himself into. Her subtle perfume wafted around him in a beguiling manner which he was positive she didn’t intend and Trevor lectured himself sternly to treat this as a business meeting, not a blind date. He might be assigned to be her escort but there was nothing personal between them, nor likely to be. Personal protection couldn’t be done right if the protector had feelings for the protectee. Best to stamp out any slightest surface attraction to the woman now. He stiffened his spine.

Unaware of his personal struggles, she continued to make conversation. “And this is Verlaine, my Tajikka service animal,” she said, stroking the creature’s back. Verlaine was the size of a small pony, with a vaguely equine face and legs, but a more canine body and tail.  Verlaine’s fur was a long, shimmering white, with hints of gray here and there.

Moving away from Gianna, the doglike creature sniffed his hand, eyed him up and down, gave him a tentative lick and sat at his mistress’s feet. “He likes you,” she said, based on the scant evidence. “He never takes to anyone so quickly. A good sign for sure. I’ve been searching for signs and omens ever since the subject of this damn trip came up. I wanted my brother to be married here, on Brumel Three but of course his fiancée insisted on being married on her homeworld. I guess I’m not only an eccentric artist, I’m rather demanding too. Spoiled since I was a kid, or so people say when they don’t think I’m listening.” Gianna laughed at her own self-deprecating humor and the warm sound reached a place inside Trevor’s heart he’d thought was long frozen, if not dead. “I’m taking a break from working on my latest commission and I’m starved,” she said. “We can talk outside while I refuel. Painting is hard work.”

“I’ve never painted anything,” he said, as she led him outside through a set of doors at the far end of the library. “When I was a cadet, the upper-class students used to make us swab the decks of the training battlecruiser by hand though.”

“Not remotely the same thing,” she said with asperity although he could tell he’d amused her by the glance she gave him, those huge green eyes brimming with mirth.

PETS IN SPACE® 5 ANTHOLOGY BLURB:

It’s time for an escape! Pets in Space® 5 is back for the fifth amazing year! Escape to new worlds with twelve of today’s top Science Fiction Romance authors. They have written 12 original, never-before-released stories filled with action, adventure, suspense, humor, and romance that will take you out of this world. The giving doesn’t stop there. For the fifth year, Pets in Space® will be donating a portion of the first month proceeds to Hero-Dogs.org, a non-profit charity that supports our veterans and First Responders. If you are ready to forget the world around you and make a difference while you are having fun, grab your copy before it’s gone!

STAR CRUISE RETURN VOYAGE blurb: Gianna Nadenoft is a reclusive survivor of one of the worst interstellar cruise ship disasters in the history of the Sectors. Now a renowned artist, she hasn’t left her home planet in decades, not since returning there after the wreck as a traumatized three-year-old. With her service animal at her side, she’s going to attempt to travel across the star systems to attend her brother’s wedding and reunite with her fellow survivors.

Trevor Hanson is a security officer aboard the cruise liner Nebula Zephyr with his own traumatic past as a former Special Forces soldier and prisoner of war. He’s assigned to provide personal protection to Gianna during her time aboard the ship but soon finds his interest turning from professional to romantic.

Onboard the Nebula Zephyr, powerful enemies are watching Gianna and making plans to seize this rare opportunity to gain access to her and the secrets they believe she’s still keeping about the wreck. Can Trevor overcome his personal demons and rise to the occasion to save Gianna from the danger waiting on his ship, or will she slip through his fingers and suffer a terrible fate deferred from her last disastrous voyage?

Amazon      Apple Books      Nook      Kobo      Google Play

 

Pets in Space® 5 authors are:

1.          S.E. Smith

2.         Michelle Diener

3.         Veronica Scott

4.         Pauline Baird Jones

5.         Laurie A. Green

6.         Carol Van Natta

7.         Regine Abel

8.         Alexis Glynn Latner

9.         JC Hay

10.       Kyndra Hatch

11.        Cassandra Chandler

12.        Leslie Chase

 

Author Bio and Links:

 

USA Today Best Selling Author

 Veronica Scott grew up in a house with a library as its heart. Dad loved science fiction, Mom loved ancient history and Veronica thought there needed to be more romance in everything. When she ran out of books to read, she started writing her own stories.

Seven time winner of the SFR Galaxy Award, as well as a National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award, Veronica is also the proud recipient of a NASA Exceptional Service Medal relating to her former day job, not her romances!

 She read the part of Star Trek Crew Member in the official audiobook production of Harlan Ellison’s “The City On the Edge of Forever.”

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Blog: https://veronicascott.wordpress.com/

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/vscotttheauthor

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Veronica-Scott/177217415659637?ref=hl

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veronica_scott_author/

 

 

Guest: Jessica E. Subject #PetsinSpace @jsubject

I'm in love with this book, too. Besides being a great anthology of enjoyable stories, I love the charity the authors are sponsoring. More about that later. My friend Jessica E. Subject is here to talk about her contribution to the story.

The Secret History of the

Galactic Defenders

by Jessica E. Subject

Please Note: 10% of the first month’s profits go to Hero-Dogs.org. Hero Dogs raises and trains service dogs and places them free of charge with US Veterans to improve quality of life and restore independence. Our donation period ends November 11^th 2017 so this is your final days to buy Embrace the Romance and help support Hero-Dogs.org.

Gib and the Tibbar is the story I have included in Embrace the Romance: Pets in Space 2. It is part of my Galactic Defenders series about a multi-race military unit that travels the universe protecting planets and their citizens from the Erebus. Today, I’m going to share the history of how the Galactic Defenders came to be.

The Yarwins are an extremely intelligent race that have been around for tens of thousands of years and live on the planet Yarwa. They are seers as well, but over the years, that ability has dwindled for many of their kind, which serves as conflict in some of the Galactic Defenders stories.

Another ancient race, the Gyoun were afraid of the Yarwins intelligence and abilities. They conducted genetic experiments on their own people to create a being that would guard their planet from the possibility of attack from the Yarwins, a being that could also leave the planet and travel by the power of their sun to Yarwa and attack if the need arose. Unfortunately, these experiments went horribly wrong. The Erebus creature they created ended up killing the entire populations of Gyoun before leaving the planet to attack Yarwa.

The seers saw the attack coming and were prepared. Though, they did lose some of their population. But, they also noticed that they weren’t able to kill all of the Erebus. Some of them leaped from the planet to travel on to another. Knowing what the Erebus were capable of, the Yarwa decided to hunt them down, prevent them from attacking any other planets.

But the Erebus population grew, and the Yarwa needed help. The Yarwa met with many of their trading partners to not only form the Galactic Alliance, but to also recruit help from other planets to create an army of Galactic Defenders whose mission was to hunt down the Erebus and protect the innocent from attack. Now, the Defenders travel to planets that are part of the Alliance as well as planets who aren’t even aware of life beyond their own to protect them from an Erebus attack.

BLURB:

Gib and the Tibbar

A Novella in the Galactic Defenders Series

By Jessica E. Subject

A dedicated Defender to the core, Gib is willing to go to any planet the Galactic Alliance sends him. That is, until he’s sent with his squad to Hemera for their Alorama ceremony, far from any threat of Erebus invasion and with no chance for promotion.

Vilarra has lived on Hemera all her life, working hard in the kitchens of the royal palace until she achieved lead hand. But learning of the universe beyond her world reveals her insignificance and shreds her sense of accomplishment and purpose.

With the help of a furry, little tibbar, Gib is determined to win the affection of Vilarra, prove to her how significant she is to him and the people who depend on her. But will his personal mission be cut short before he has the chance to win her heart?

About the anthology:

The pets are back! Embrace the Romance: Pets in Space 2, featuring twelve of today’s leading Science Fiction Romance authors brings you a dozen original stories written just for you! Join in the fun, from the Dragon Lords of Valdier to a trip aboard award-winning author, Veronica Scott’s Nebula Zephyr to journeying back to Luda where Grim is King, for stories that will take you out of this world! Join New York Times, USA TODAY, and Award-winning authors S.E. Smith, M.K. Eidem, Susan Grant, Michelle Howard, Cara Bristol, Veronica Scott, Pauline Baird Jones, Laurie A. Green, Sabine Priestley, Jessica E. Subject, Carol Van Natta, and Alexis Glynn Latner as they share stories and help out Hero-Dogs.org, a charity that supports our veterans!

10% of the first month’s profits go to Hero-Dogs.org. Hero Dogs raises and trains service dogs and places them free of charge with US Veterans to improve quality of life and restore independence. **Our donation period ends November 11^th 2017 so this is your final days to buy Embrace the Romance and help support Hero-Dogs.org.

EBOOK BUY LINKS:

Amazon http://bit.ly/EmbraceTheRomance

Amazon CA https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B073W5WQBH/

Amazon UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B073W5WQBH/

Amazon AU https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B073W5WQBH/

Amazon FR https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B073W5WQBH/

Amazon DE https://www.amazon.de/dp/B073W5WQBH/

Amazon JP https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B073W5WQBH/

iBooks http://bit.ly/EmbraceTheRomanceiBooks

B&N https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/embrace-the-romance-se-smith/1126723852

Kobo https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/embrace-the-romance-pets-in-space-2

Google Play https://play.google.com/store/books/details/S_E_Smith_Embrace_the_Romance_Pets_in_Space_2?id=Jp8rDwAAQBAJ

Universal Link for All Stores:

Books2Read books2read.com/u/3L9aYM

Add to Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35658092-embrace-the-romance

EXCERPT:

A small, furry white creature scampered between the Defenders and the fire. Gib yanked his feet back and gasped. He tried to follow the path the animal took, and when it disappeared into the grassy field, he relaxed a little. Not that he was afraid, only startled by the sudden appearance of the critter.

But his watch partner reacted differently. The cowardly Defender stood on his bench, reaching for a low branch on the ropral tree as if to lift himself farther off the ground. “What in Gaspra was that? No one told me about any deadly creatures on this planet.”

Gib laughed and slapped his hand on his lap. “I wouldn’t call the fluffy little thing that raced by us a deadly creature.”

“Okay, Hemera is infested with vermin, then.” Zair examined the area around him before he dared put a foot on the ground.

A high-pitched squeak sounded, and Gib’s surveillance partner returned to reaching for the branches. The little creature stood on its hind legs below Zair’s bench, peeping as if telling him off.

Gib couldn’t hold in his laughter. Not just at the other Defender’s reaction, but also the thoughts running through Zair’s mind, thoughts he’d failed to block in his fear.

“It’s not going to eat you.” Gib shook his head, wondering how his squad mate could see the creature as dangerous. “Would you please get down from there? Defenders are supposed to be brave and fierce. Right now, you’re neither.”

“Go to Gaspra, Mingot. And stay out of my head.” He yanked his plazer from his hip holster and aimed it at the critter. “If I don’t destroy it, it will bring death to everyone on this planet.”

Stepping into the line of fire, Gib yanked the weapon from his squad mate, thankful the safety remained on. “You’re being ridiculous. Besides, if you fire your weapon, you’ll cause a panic. The Hemera will think Erebus have arrived.”

The frightened Defender shook a foot at the creature. “Fine, then. Kick it into the fire. Or you could stomp on it.”

“Don’t you dare!” A Hemera woman burst from the bushes, storming toward Zair like a mother rehn protecting her young. She shoved him off his bench and shouldered past Gib before scooping the noisy creature into her hand. “This is my tibbar, not some kind of vermin.”

“Tibbar? Try nasty rodent that tried to eat me.” Zair smoothed out his uniform but kept his distance from the creature now perched on the woman’s shoulder.

“You’re both on nehbred.” She kicked dirt at them, her pink lips pursed and her dark eyes set in a deadly stare. “You don’t know what you’re talking about when it comes to my pet or my planet.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jessica E. Subject is the author of science fiction romance, mostly alien romances, ranging from sweet to super hot. Sometimes she dabbles in paranormal and contemporary as well, bringing to life a wide variety of characters. In her stories, you could not only meet a sexy alien or two, but also clones and androids. You may be transported to a dystopian world where rebels are fighting to live and love, or to another planet for a romantic rendezvous.

When Jessica is not reading, writing, or doing dreaded housework, she likes to go to fitness class and walk her Great Pyrenees/Retriever her family adopted from the local animal shelter.

Jessica lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two energetic children. And she loves to hear from her readers. You can find her at jessicasubject.com.

AUTHOR LINKS:

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