A Dog’s Life

Shaggy, Petey and Finn took over the Wicked Cozy blog today. #AdoptDontShop

Wicked Cozy Authors

By Liz, looking forward to a beach day or two this weekend!

I’m a huge Mary Oliver fan – have been since I read her poem “The Journey” years ago. I recently picked up her book Dog Songs, a collection celebrating her various pups and the bond she shares with them. The poems are sweet, simple, and moving, and wonderfully capture the essence of the beautiful canine soul. She and her dogs clearly love the beach – it’s mentioned in many of the pieces, like “School,” where her dog Percy wants to roll in a dead fish on the sand. She justifies this with, “It’s summer. How many summers does a little dog have?…This is our school.” Which led me to reflect on my own pups and their many adventures. Having celebrated Shaggy’s “Gotcha Day” in July and preparing for her 8th birthday in September, it seemed fitting to do a…

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Cover Reveal – A Good Day To Buy (Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery 4)

Cover Reveal – A Good Day To Buy (Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery 4)

Source: Cover Reveal – A Good Day To Buy (Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery 4)

Welcome Reviewer Extraordinaire, John Valeri!

Hey friends, Liz here. Today I have the pleasure of introducing one of my favorite pals – and hardcore book reviewer – John Valeri. John and I met the first time I attended the Seascape…

Source: Welcome Reviewer Extraordinaire, John Valeri!

A Day at the Beach

Life’s A Beach

Wicked Cozy Authors

Hi friends, Liz here. Many of you probably know I am a total beach freak. I live for summer and harbor fantasies about living in a beachy place where summer is year round. Everything is better on the sand with the ocean in view.

But what does a day at the beach really entail? I know when I’m dreaming of my beach time, I’m thinking of the moment when butt hits chair or feet hit water. But it’s not quite that simple. Here’s a look at the totality of a day at the beach, at least in my world.

The Day Before: Get excited. Find something healthy and yummy you can make and bring. Make said healthy yummy food. If really ambitious, gather chairs, umbrella and other paraphernalia for easy packing. Choose between Second Beach in Middletown, Rhode Island (2 hrs away) or Horseneck Beach, Westport, MA (1.5 hrs away).

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Wicked Wednesday: Myth Busting Part 1

Rules or No Rules ~ that is the question

Wicked Cozy Authors

There are so many myths and rules that fly around about writing and the writing process that we decided to tackle some of them head on. Bust them, actually. Because the truth is, if something works–or doesn’t work–for you, then you have to honor that. We’re all different people and we all approach the craft of writing differently. It’s a learning process, for sure. And the way to jump in isn’t with other people’s rules front and center, halting your creative process.

This week, we’re sticking with the character theme and talking about character bibles. Many people say you must have one, and it has to have specific elements to be effective. So Wickeds, what do you think? Do you use character bibles? Does having or not having one make or break your books?

Edith: I have one for each series. I need a list of all the characters and what…

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Why You Need a Vision Board

Wonderful! 🌀

Wicked Cozy Authors

By Liz, still adjusting to real life after a fabulous Wicked retreat….

As you may have heard, the Wickeds held our annual retreat this past weekend. You’ll get the skinny tomorrow when we post our favorite memories, but one of the topics that came up was vision boards–who does them, who loves them, who’s never heard of them. Since I’m in the “I love them” camp, I figured I’d do a post about why we all should use them.

I first learned about vision boards from watching The Secret years ago, and the concept intrigued me. The idea is to put a visual depiction of anything you want to bring into your life in a place where you can look at it multiple times each day. By seeing a picture–literally–of what you want to achieve, accomplish, acquire, etc., you’re focusing on what brings you joy. And when you focus on those things, you…

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Another #fearLESS Wellness Tool

Happy Saturday fearless friends! I just wanted to quickly share with you another tool that has helped me on my wellness journey. I have been using this particular tool for several years now under the supervision of Dr Ming Wu of the Wu Healing Center in West Hartford, CT. He uses moxa sometimes during my tui-na sessions to help with various blocks. Just recently I purchased my own Moxa Rolls to use at my home. This video is a quick demo of me utilizing the moxa roll to help with a nasty spider bite that also appears to have some type of poison ivy element surrounding it. Moxa has proven to be an effective tool for me as I continue on my wellness journey. You can learn more about Moxa and the health benefits it provides over at the Wu Healing Facebook page where Dr Wu demonstrates the process in more detail.

What do you think #fearLESS friends would you be willing to give Moxa a try? 

On Retreat

Barb here. It’s that time of year again, when the Wickeds scamper off to Old Orchard Beach for our annual retreat. Hard to believe it is our fifth one! Each of the retreats has had a differen…

Source: On Retreat

Wicked Wednesday: Sidekicks

Holmes and Watson. Nick and Nora. Kenzie and Gennaro. Wexford and Burden. Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi. Even lone wolf sleuths need someone to chew the case over with. Sometimes it’s a sleuth…

Source: Wicked Wednesday: Sidekicks

Dangerous Plant Alert

Be cautious of giant hogweed friends.

New Hampshire Garden Solutions

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has put this plant near the top of its Federal Noxious Weed list. Officials in Washington are asking residents to be on the lookout for it so they can eradicate it. In New York a hotline has been set up so residents can easily report sightings, and crews in several states are seeking it out and destroying it. To date it has been reported in Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington and Vermont.

The plant is the giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum), originally from central Asia. Since its discovery it has spread all over the world, because as a specimen plant it is a knockout.  White flowers nearly 3 feet in diameter bloom on top of stalks that can reach 15 feet tall. The tropical looking compound leaves grow 3-5 feet across and up to 9 feet…

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