A blend of folklore and fact explains how Samuel Clemmons became Mark Twain, another byproduct of the famed author’s time as a riverboat employee. The most validated tale revolves around captain Isaiah Sellers and his pragmatic descriptions of the Mississippi River—its water levels and favorable, or not, sailing conditions. In the margin of his logs, it’s said that Sellers embellished the dry waterway notes, detailing the river with more interesting and less perfunctory information. He’d sign his all his findings—exaggerated and unadorned—“Mark Twain.” And so was born the identity that Samuel Clemmons chose for his own writing. The words he saw as extensions of the truth, or the fiction we know as Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.
Oh, the Drama!
Writers—romance writers in particular—require drama. I mean, if it weren’t for conflict, books would be rather boring things. In real life it’s not so black and white, as no one likes endless jags of drama, fits of jealousy or continuous battle rounds—unless it’s The Voice. Still, whether drama is found in your living room or a novel, occasional emotional anarchy is unavoidable.
Is Clorox Gluten-Free?
I’m a writer. But I never thought I’d write a blog, or even a note to myself, about being gluten-free. Now, surely you’ve just concluded I’m newly diagnosed, that I’ve found my social conversation cross to bear via genealogical fate—but you’d be wrong. I’ve been a card-carrying Celiac for nearly six years. I’ve just never been particularly motivated to put pen to paper—or fingers on a keyboard, as the case may be. If I were to tackle the topic, I’d start with my grandmother. I owe her. In addition to hips wider than I’d like, I’m certain she was the giver of this special gift, although she was never diagnosed.
This Is The Reason Lovers Lie
Good lovers lie. Or so said a pre-Valentine’s Day New York Times post on the subject. The well-written article goes into great depth when it comes to passion-prodded lying—to your significant other, your children, and your friends. “If you want to have love in your life, you’d better be prepared to tell some lies and to believe some lies.”
This past weekend, my daughter put that concept to the test. Her new beau, while a delightful young man, didn’t seem terribly dialed in to the nuances of the special date. When she mentioned having purchased him a gift, his response was, “Oh. I made a dinner reservation. I didn’t know we were doing gifts.”
Heat & Ruby Ink
Welcome! This is the place for all things Clairmont. Ruby Ink is the first novel in the Clairmont series, with a March 31st pub date! I hope you’ll go straight from here to Amazon and pre-order your copy. Sensual romance and intriguing stories blended with believable characters defines this series, which centers on the Clairmont family—Alec, Aaron, Honor, Jake & Troy. Book two—coming this summer—reveals the stunning and intimate story of Evie and Sebastian, the never-married parents of the Clairmont Tribe of Five.