1. Prince

2. Hill Harper

3. Avery Storm

4. Nelly

5. Gabriel Aubry

6. Terrence Howard

7. Michael Ealy

8. Tyrese

9. Tyson Beckford

10. Billy Zane

11. Vin Diesel

12.Reggie Bush

Yes it has Kim Kardashian in it but I think it’s a sexy pose.

13. Paul Walker

Bonus:

14. Ray J

15. David Beckham

**This list isn’t in order of importance or likability/favorite status.

1. Books (of course – and yes there is too too too many to count. And it’s starting to happen with ebooks too.)

2. My 16-year-old dog Gallageher (He’s old but lovable and is usually snoring under my desk)

3. Cooking (One of the reasons I’m going to culinary school)

4. Movies (I used to want to be a documentary filmmaker. And I love the old classic movies – Audrey Hepburn, Lana Turner, Orson Welles, Grace Kelley – to name some of my fave movie stars/silver screen faves.)

5. Wigs (I get bored easily and it’s a quick way to change up my look and have some fun)

6. High Heels (Though I can be kinda clutzy)

7. My family (Though they can be annoying and frustrating at times, they have been there for me)

8. Project Runway (Tim Gunn – Need I say more)

9. The Food Network

10. Angels (I have a collection of figurines)

11. Hanging with my friends

12. Romance Divas

13. Crafting (I get bored easily so I’m always teaching myself new things).

Bonus:

14. Music (I have a very eclectic music collection and varied taste in music thanks to my dad. Some of my pandora stations include Prince (of course), Coldplay, Sade, Santana, Justin Timberlake, Il Divo and Electronica)

15. Sexy Men – (Next Week’s Thursday 13 with Pics)

Warning – visiting these sites may make you hungry!

1. The Pioneer Woman

2. Smitten Kitchen

3. Kitchen Ambition

4. Food Porn Daily (Click on the gallery link)

5. Love and Olive Oil

6. The Cake Spy

7. The Girl Who Ate Everything

8. Cookbook Chronicles

9. $5 Dinners

10.  Jenn Cuisine

11. 101 Cookbooks

12.  Local Harvest

13. Chocolate & Zucchini

Bonus:

14. Bakerella

15. Bakin’ and Eggs

16. Menuism

13 things that are around my desk:

1. Cellphone

2. 32 oz Water bottle (from filterforgood.com)

3. Thing 1

4. Squeezable cow stress relief

5. Mini lavalamp

6. Orchid crayon

7. Bead wire

8. Various shades of blue beads

9. Alvin the Chipmunk dressed as an angel figurine

10. The dog (under the desk) snoring

11. The Synonym Finder

12. Shea & cocoa butter hand cream

13. Paint can candle I made

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1. Keep your head down and write
2. You can’t fix a blank page
3. Write for yourself
4. Don’t write what you know, write what you want
5. Talent helps but perseverance is key to success
6. Learn your craft
7. Study books, read
8. Write what you want to read
9. Finish it!
10. If you get stuck, ask what if
11. Write every day
12. Don’t worry about getting it right, get it written
13. You can’t sell an unfinished novel/story.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday.

Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others’ comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

1. A synopsis is not an outline. It is an overview of your plot.
2. A synopsis should be able to tell if you have a strong enough plot to sustain your novel.
3. A synopsis should not be crammed full of every detail, description and character.
4. A synopsis should be concise. It should be focused, tight and open with a strong hook.
5. Don’t describe characters physical appearance. It’s not relevant because it doesn’t tell if you have a story.
6. Tip: When writing your synopsis, if you get stuck ask your questions. Why? What if? Because? And?
7. A synopsis is more than a back cover blurb. A back cover blurb is missing the ending of the story. With a synopsis you have to tell how the story ends.
8. Don’t over explain or over tell. You want to tell the story so the editor gets an idea of the flow and plot of your story. You want your synopsis to be interesting so the editor wants to read your story.
9. Showcase the major plot and turning points without being boring or bogging down the synopsis.
10. A synopsis tells what the story is about not how it happens so it is okay to eliminate minor elements such as secondary characters and subplots unless essential to the story.
11. Proofread  your synopsis before submitting to eliminate passive voice, redundant sentences, telling, adverbs as well as spelling and grammar errors.
12. Tip: List scene ideas and arrange in chronological order.
13. Tip: Practice writing a synopsis for a book you already own. This can help your figure out what elements, plot points and subplots are important.
14. Bonus: Focus on the what not the how of the story.

1. Blair Underwood presents Casanegra by Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes

2. If You Just Say Yes by Reon Laudat

3. The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

4. 21st Century Courtesan by Eden Bradley

5. Any Given Doomsday by Lori Handeland

6. Looker by Stanley Bennett Clay

7. Red Light Special by Risque

8. Sexy Devil by Sasha White

9. Red by Jordan Summers

10. No More Playas by Brenda Jackson

11. Purple Panties by Zane

12. Gimme an O by Kayla Perrin

13. Surviving Demon Island by Jaci Burton

Honorable Mention: Dance Upon the Air by Nora Roberts – This is a comfort read for me. Well the series is so it’s always within reach.

I am a book addict. I fully admit it. I love books. I love to read. Be it audio, ebook (preferred) or print. I have hundreds of books by my bed and in the basement. I blame my love of books and reading on my sister, my dad and my 2nd grade teacher. I mean, I’m a writer, so it stands to reason that I’d love books. Right?

Plus, there were so many that didn’t make the list. I’ll be doing lists in coming weeks of ebooks, recently read, young adult, non-fiction, audio books comfort reads and craft/research/reference books. And sadly (maybe/maybe not) I could probably break that down by genre and hard cover vs paperback.

1. Clue

2. Xanadu

3. Wild Wild West

4. Staying Alive

5. The Wiz

6. Purple Rain

7. Under the Cherry Moon

8. Graffiti Bridge

9. Simply Irresistible

10. The Last Starfighter

11. Ice Castles

12. Mars Attacks!

13. Desperately Seeking Susan

2. Muttering strange words and phrases about things normal people shouldn’t think about. Hmm… I wonder how long this poison would take to act. Or such things as… how many ways are there to kill a vampire? is it possible for a human to have sex with a shapeshifter? if your best friend/boyfriend turned out to be a demon what would your reaction be?

3. Asking strange questions out of the blue about width, girth, length and position

4. Staring at the computer screen and arguing with my characters.

5. Yelling about my characters because they want to go one way and I want to go another.

6. Completely changing the subject or blurting things out of the blue that has nothing to do with the conversation or topic at hand

7. Laughing out loud to no one and nothing in particular

8. Yelling, that’s it, she/he should…..

9. Carrying around a notebook and writing and walking at the the same time while shopping or doing something else to get the idea down or the scene that was bothering me, not working down so I won’t forget it.

10. Talking to myself (not necessarily writer related)

11. Asking strange questions like – if someone were stalking you, why would they stalk you and how would you handle it?

12. Asking even stranger questions like – do you think that if three people were involved in a menage a trois that this position would work?

13. Do you think this position is humanly possible without spraining anything?

Bonus:

14. Me saying… I heard such and such a store has some new toys in. Wanna go with me to/Let’s go check them out…

15. Did I mention talking to myself? I think that one bares repeating.