Samhain Publishing

In HATSEPT HEAT, Vampire Council of Ethics Book 3 (coming this Tuesday, by the way) our heroine happens to be a culinary whiz who keeps one of our favorite vampires in dessert heaven (and that’s both in and out of bed – woohoo!). Well, it got me to thinking about some of my own culinary experiences.

As most of you know, both my daughter and I are total geniuses in the kitchen. My speciality is…actually that’s hard ‘cause I’m pretty good at cooking just about anything. My daughter’s specialty is baking and Japanese food.

But I’m still at a total loss. I’m not the Dessert Diva or anything but this is beyond believable. SOMEONE ACTUALLY SCREWED UP BANANA PUDDING! How do you possibly mess up something so wonderfully delicious and simple as banana pudding?

Yes, people, it has happened to me. I went to a potluck and one of the dishes I looked forward to after the typical spaghetti, stringbean casserole and chili (you know, typical potluck food) was, you guessed, the banana pudding.

Basically, you just take some vanilla pudding and layer it in a casserole dish with vanilla wafers, or sevory ginger snaps if you’re so inclined. Top it off with some whipped cream and toss it in the fridge to chill. Tadaaa! Banana pudding at it’s finest.

So, I can’t figure out how this particular batch tasted like burned tires on a hot summer day layered over some freshly tarred blacktop. Gack! I won’t way who made it ‘cause if she reads this blog, she’ll kill me, especially since she thinks it tasted more like melted crayons with a bit of vanilla stirred in and she’ll be upset that I used my own analogy.

Then, there’s the girl’s night out I held at my house one evening. A bowl of potato salad showed up…and it tasted like steamed cabbage without the steamed bit. Now, uh, since the only ingredients in potato salad is potatoes, spices and a bit of mayo, where the heck did the cabbage thing come from since there was no cabbage in it?

So, have you ever encountered a dish that you believed was impossible to get wrong? More nosily (I just can’t help it, I’ve gotta know ;D) have you personally done a dish that you knew how to really prepare well…only to have it come out like you’d made it in someone elses kitchen with a blindfold on?

I’ve gotta have feedback on this one!

TJ
..* ´¨¨)) :
¸.*´ .*´¨¨))
((¸¸.*´ ..*´ www.tjmichaels.com :
: ((¸¸.´ www.dynamicthree.com
CARAMEL KISSES, Coming Soon
HATSEPT HEAT, V.C.O.E. Bk 3 ~ July 2008
DOING IT THE HARD WAY, Pocket Books Anthology ~ Feb 2009

In HATSEPT HEAT, Vampire Council of Ethics Book 3 (coming this Tuesday, by the way) our heroine happens to be a culinary whiz who keeps one of our favorite vampires in dessert heaven (and that’s both in and out of bed – woohoo!). Well, it got me to thinking about some of my own culinary experiences.

As most of you know, both my daughter and I are total geniuses in the kitchen. My speciality is…actually that’s hard ‘cause I’m pretty good at cooking just about anything. My daughter’s specialty is baking and Japanese food.

But I’m still at a total loss. I’m not the Dessert Diva or anything but this is beyond believable. SOMEONE ACTUALLY SCREWED UP BANANA PUDDING! How do you possibly mess up something so wonderfully delicious and simple as banana pudding?

Yes, people, it has happened to me. I went to a potluck and one of the dishes I looked forward to after the typical spaghetti, stringbean casserole and chili (you know, typical potluck food) was, you guessed it, the banana pudding.

Basically, you just take some vanilla pudding and layer it in a casserole dish with vanilla wafers, or savory ginger snaps if you’re so inclined. Top it off with some whipped cream and toss it in the fridge to chill. Tadaaa! Banana pudding at it’s finest.

So, I can’t figure out how this particular batch tasted like burned tires on a hot summer day layered over some freshly tarred blacktop. Gack! I won’t say who made it ‘cause if she reads this blog, she’ll kill me, especially since she thinks it tasted more like melted crayons with a bit of vanilla stirred in and she’ll be upset that I used my own analogy.

Then, there was the girl’s night out I held at my house one evening. A bowl of potato salad showed up…and it tasted like steamed cabbage without the steamed bit. Now, uh, since the only ingredients in potato salad is potatoes, spices and a bit of mayo, where the heck did the cabbage thing come from since there was no cabbage in it?

So, have you ever encountered a dish that you believed was impossible to get wrong? More nosily (I just can’t help it, I’ve gotta know ;D) have you personally done a dish that you knew how to really prepare well…only to have it come out like you’d made it in someone elses kitchen with a blindfold on?

I’ve gotta have feedback on this one! And feel free to provide recipes ;D

TJ
..* ´¨¨)) :
¸.*´ .*´¨¨))
((¸¸.*´ ..*´ www.tjmichaels.com :
: ((¸¸.´ www.dynamicthree.com
CARAMEL KISSES, Coming Soon
HATSEPT HEAT, V.C.O.E. Bk 3 ~ July 2008
DOING IT THE HARD WAY, Pocket Books Anthology ~ Feb 2009

Book 2 of the Vampire Council of Ethics series is now available in print. If you haven’t gotten your hands on Book 1 (Carinian’s Seeker), or this title, Serati’s Flame, you will have yet another opportunity to enjoy this series. Why? Because Hatsept Heat, V.C.O.E. Book 3 is coming next month! Wooot!

So what are reviewers saying about Serati’s Flame?

5 Hearts @ Fallen Angel Reviews, Hayley
Serati’s Flame is the second book in T.J. Michael’s Vampire Council series. It is hard to believe but it is even better than the first. The struggles that Alaan faces while trying to maintain his distance from Tamath when they are forced to work as a team make for some intriguing reading. Tamath is great as a female lead. Independent and focused, she has longed for Alaan for years but he can’t see past his lust for revenge to realize that she is the one for him. The title is very apt due to the highly flammable interactions between Alaan and Tamath. Whether they are fighting or ripping off each others clothes it is hot, hot, hot! This story has a great plot filled with action balanced by sizzling sex scenes makes for one great read. Tamath and Alaan are well suited to each other with their Alpha personalities clashing to make for a highly exciting ride. Their biting comments to one another make for a humorous read as well. What more do you need, humor, hot men, vampires, and a strong alpha female? Nothing! This book fills all those needs.

5 Hearts, Sensuality Rating: Explicit @ The Romance Studio, Contessa
This fantastic story is just as good and dangerously exciting as its predecessor. This plot will fulfill your gratification for scorching, hot sexual encounters all while satisfying your hunger for non-stop action. Alaan and Tamath are the perfect mates for each other – both are persistent, strong-minded and have alpha-type personalities. These combinations make for some electrifying interactions between the couple both in sexual and combat arenas. Readers, you will not be disappointed with this flaming novel. I, for one, am eagerly looking forward to Ms. Michael next wildly, thrilling book within the Vampire Council of Ethics series.

Order eBook at: Samhain Publishing
Order Print Copies at Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble

Hi all,

Most of you know I’ve been globe hopping for work quite a bit the last few weeks. I started out in Chicago, which can’t be considered globe hopping unless you think Chicagoans are from another planet. After driving on the freeways out there, I’m not so sure! LOL!

Next I went to Belgium through Amsterdam and spent a week in a little town called Geel (pronounced ‘heel’). I am now officially addicted to Belgian bread and can be considered a choco-‘ho (yes, ‘ho, not whore ;D). I don’t eat very many sweets, but after that bit-o-bliss, I think it’ll be impossible to settle for anything less than the real thing. God, my wallet is in trouble.

Left there and headed to Dublin where my fabulous kidlets met up with me. Everything was going fabulously until I had a wreck. Yes, ya’ll, a straight up car-to-van wreck not three minutes from the airport. Luckily no one was hurt, but the rental car had a pretty good cavern where the back bumper used to be. The kids weren’t in the car, thankfully – I picked them up from the airport the next morning.

After spending a glorious time lost and broke (it is SO expensive there!) in Dublin we headed to the UK where I am finishing up my little foreign foray. Today is the last day of class that I’m teaching, then we’ll head home on Friday morning, UK time. Did you know that Liverpool, England has an anglican cathedral at the city center that took 100 years to build? It’s absolutely amazing to see so many old buildings and walls, some as old at 6 A.D. That’s the year 6, as in 2002 years ago. It never ceases to amaze me.

Oh, I almost forgot to add some book stuff – SERATI’S FLAME is out in print next month (SQUEEEEE!) and HATSEPT HEAT, Vampire Council of Ethics Book 3, is out in July. I’m very excited about these coming releases. So much so, that I’m feverishly working on the next book so I can get it in to my editor who, by the way, totally RAWKS!!!!

With all the cool things we get to see and experience, you’ll never guess what I miss the most. Anyone? Anyone? No guesses, eh?

I MISS MY EBOOK READER!!!!! The wall plugs and voltage are different here, and even with a wall adapter the charger for my eBookwise is too low of voltage to charge the device. Also, since I plugged a 120V adapter into a 240V outlet I probably fried the thing extra crispy! ROFL!

Later ya’ll. I’ve got to wrap up this class so I can get back to the hotel and pack. It’s 9:00am in my home state of Colorado…but it’s already 4:00pm in Liverpool. While I’m on the ride home I’ll be whining about the temporary halt in my affair with my eBook reader.

Anything you just can’t do without? If so, spill it. You know I love to hear your business ;D

TJ

Years and years ago, my grandma promised me that when I hit forty I’d be remeniscing about the good ole days. Of course, I scoffed, laughed and outright proclaimed that she was absolutely, totally wrong. I was a teenager at the time, and we all acknowledge that teenagers know everything ‘snark’.

So, here’s today’s question – What in the world did we do before cell phones came along? Now, for those of you who were still in high school in the eighties, you KNOW what I’m talking about.

In 1985, I graduated from high school at age 16. And god, I wanted to be one of the really cool kids who had a cell phone. Mind you, there weren’t many considering how expensive it was. Not to mention the things weighted forty pounds! Okay, I’m exaggerating…they weighed ten pounds and looked like a brick covered with silver plastic!

Growing up in a typical middle-class neighborhood, my mom was a nurse and my dad was a manager at San Francisco Int’l Airport. But we didn’t have a computer at home (nobody on our block did, either). The closest thing we had was an Atari 64 with PacMan (bank, bank, bank, bank, woodooodooodoo – that’s the sound of PacMan eating little blue blinking lights and flashing ghost thingys).

TV? The best thing going was Star Trek. Yes, that was back when Captain James T. Kirk was hella sexy and slept with anything that breathed. And we LIKED it. Back then, Michael Jackson was still black and we all wanted to marry him. John Travolta was the next hip-twitchin’ Elvis singing Greased Lightening and doing the hand jive. Mr. Spock was sexy as hell.

AND THERE WERE FIVE CHANNELS ON NON-CABLE TV – Channel 2, 4, 5, 7, and 9. Maybe 13, if you were lucky. If you had cable, you got forty channels and NO pay-per-view. Sigh.

So what did we do? We read. We got out of the house. We walked, rode bikes up and down the hills of San Francisco. Took trips to the beach or the zoo. Or went walking in the park.

What DIDN’T WE DO? We didnt’ work twenty-four seven. The boss didn’t call in the middle of the evening commute to give us more work to do when we got home. Why? Cause we couldn’t dial into the office anyway (woohoo!). Why not? We didn’t have an internet connection. We didn’t ‘gasp’ blog every day. There was no yelling at the kids to turn down the surround sound, or turn off the DVD player, or get off the XBox 360. We didn’t have any of that stuff.

House was cleaner…‘cause the chores got done without much of a fight. The rule was get your chores done or you can’t go outside. Well, who goes outside anymore when they can play video games? ‘hack – wheeze’!

Don’t get me wrong – I love technology. I work with it everyday. But my job can reach me anywhere at anytime, whether I’m at home, in the airport, on vacation, or on the damned freeway. And considering it’s after-hours, and I just got off the phone with my boss, I miss the days when we got home, spent time with family, had dinner together, then mooned over Star Trek!

I never thought I’d say it, but grandma was right. Here I am, due to turn forty in a few months…and I long for the days when work was work, and home was home.

If your grandma made the same prediction, then give her a shout out right here, baby! Yo, Gramms! You were right! ‘tj running around in circles, pulling the locs off of her head!’

TJ
www.tjmichaels.com

PS – Oh, I almost forgot, HATSEPT HEAT, Book 3 in the Vampire Council of Ethics, is coming! For an excerpt, visit my website at http://www.tjmichaels.com/sneak-peek/

…get your family to clean up after themselves?

My kids, I love ‘em to pieces. They’re teens who’ve spoiled me dreadfully considering I haven’t cooked dinner for myself in at least a year…maybe two? Good lord, I can’t remember. Anyway, every book I’ve ever written, including the eight that I’ve contracted since last June, is dedicated to them. Why? ‘Cause they understand and support their mom who slaves away at the day job, comes home to listen to all their news, both good and bad, before I settle down to write.

But MY GOD! My kitchen is in a constant state of chaos. Sink full of dishes at all times of the day. Once the crock pot is empty it may take eighty years before it gets washed. And the thought of having a drawer full of clean silverware is simply a dream. There should be a sign on my front door that says, “Caution! Tazmanian Devil lives in the kitchen! Enter at your own risk.”

Take away the XBox? Big deal. Take away the cell phone (that gets my son’s attention, but my daughter, the sweetheart, couldn’t care less). Ban the TV? Woop-dee-doo. Ground ‘em? They’ll sit in the living room chatting happily while reading a book, or working on their Japanese (now THAT trips people out! A Black/Native American family speaking Japanese at the Denver mall! Hoot! ROFL!)

But I digress. I was complaining about the messy chid’rens (yes, chid’rens – that’s how my dad, who’s from Georgia, says it. He’s so cute). My kids are brilliant, loving, and giving to no end. They take care of each other and, to a large degree, me as well. So what am I gonna do about their tendency to be big ‘ole slobs?

Well…as a single parent I’ve learned to just let some stuff slide, then gripe about it to ya’ll instead! If the biggest thing I have to complain about is a few dishes in the sink then maybe we’re doing pretty well.

So how do you get your family to be a bit neater? Or are you like me, and just say “Aw, screw it!”

TJ
www.tjmichaels.com
www.dynamicthree.com

The second book in the Vampire Council of Ethics is released today! Talk about psyched! The first book, Carinian’s Seeker, V.C.O.E. Book 1 has received rave reviews. I hope you enjoy this follow up just as much. It’s Alaan’s story…‘nuff said ;D

Yummy excerpt below ‘wink‘

TJ
..• ´¨¨)) :
¸.•´ .•´¨¨))
((¸¸.•´ ..•´ www.tjmichaels.com :
: ((¸¸.•´* www.dynamicthree.com
SERATI’S FLAME, V.C.O.E. Book 2, August 21, 2007
EGYPTIAN VOYAGE, August 29, 2007
FERAL FASCINATION, Summer 2007 in Print

“Damned woman,” Alaan grumbled to himself. “Of all people, why does Tameth Serati-Cole have to be my Second? Nothing but trouble, hanging out with that Clan Hatsept pipsqueak, pale-faced, stringy-haired pimp. Who cares if she outranks almost every Seeker in the Western territories? She’s still a royal pain in the ass…”

And strong, reliable, beautiful. Hair so thick and long he wouldn’t mind wrapping himself in it. Not to mention a killer body that called to him whenever she walked by, and an ass so perfect… Wait a minute. What the hell was he thinking? The more he thought about the woman, the stronger the longing was that crept up the back of his mind and surrounded his heart with the need for a mate. But he couldn’t walk that path again. He couldn’t feel this way about Tameth, or anyone else. It wasn’t worth the heartache. His position as both a Seeker and son to the Serati Matriarch made life too dangerous for any woman foolish enough to love him.

Pushing away the dull, empty ache centered in his chest along with the raging hard-on that accompanied images of Tameth these days, Alaan painted on his customary scowl and walked the last flight of stairs up to her apartments.

He stopped cold in the middle of the wide, long hallway. What the hell was that? It sounded like…moaning. Sensing no danger, he started moving towards Tameth’s door with slow, measured steps, his boots silent as he padded across the plush carpet. All was quiet except for a murmur so faint Alaan was sure he would have missed it if not for his exceptional hearing. Something about the sound made his heart rate kick up. The sheaths covering his fangs tingled and itched, and the typically smooth skin over his brows furrowed into a deep frown. The barely audible sound caused a fierce physical reaction as his keen eyesight raked the area from one end of the long stretch to the other. There it was again, a feminine gasp and sigh that sounded like…

“Oh, yes, God, that feels so good. Mmm, a little lower.”

Tameth?

“Whatever you want, baby, however you want it,” whispered a seductive male voice. A very familiar, too-smooth male voice.

Before he’d even made a decision on what to do next, Alaan sprinted the final distance to Tameth’s door, moving silently towards the source of the noises.

Her cries of pleasure wrapped around his cock and squeezed, while at the same time the very thought of her with another male had his gut twisting in knots. A scorching surge of anger whipped through him so blazing hot, the ends of his hair singed a coal black.

So she was moaning, eh? Well, the person who made her create that sound had better be prepared to have the living shit kicked out of him.

With one huge shoulder braced against the door, Alaan readied himself to force it open, then decided to change his tactic. To hell with the subtle approach. He stepped back, lifted a heavily-booted size thirteen and kicked with all his strength. The door flew several feet into the room followed by a pissed off six-foot-five, two-hundred-and-fifty-pound Seeker.

Fangs bared in fury, Alaan burst into Tameth’s living room ready to do some serious damage. His fingers automatically closed over the handle of the customized laser-sighted titanium pistol in the holster at the small of his back. Then his whole body went completely still.

Please, God, let the earth open up and swallow me now.

A fully clothed Kenoe sat on the couch, knees spread, with an equally clothed Tameth sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of him receiving a shoulder massage. The two couldn’t have looked more like best girlfriends if they’d tried.

And both of them had the smirk from hell plastered across their smug faces.

“Uh, please tell me you’re going to pay for that, Alaan,” Tameth said easily, nodding towards the ruined door flat on the carpet. Without waiting for a response, she leaned her head to the side and Kenoe pressed his pale fingers into an obviously sore spot on her shoulder.

First off, CARINIAN’S SEEKER was released in print yesterday! Woohooooo tj dancing badly around her office at work

And you know what? I’m in the mood to simply have some fun. So, check out this list my kid sent me. It’s a hoot! Leave a post telling us if any of these apply to you and your name gets tossed into a hat for a prize. Wondering what the prize is? Ah-ah-aaahhh! It’s a surprise! We’ll announce the winner tomorrow at www.dynamicthree.com/blog as part of my Thursday Thirteen.

Here we go…
You know you’re living in 2007 when:
1. You accidentally enter your password on the microwave.
2. You haven’t played solitaire with real cards in years.
3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of 3.
4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.
5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don’t have e-mail addresses.
6. You go home after a long day at work you still answer the phone in a business manner.
7. You make phone calls from home and you accidentally dial “9” to get an outside line.
8. You’ve sat at the same desk for four years and worked for three different companies.
10. You learn about your redundancy on the 11 o’clock news.
11. Your boss doesn’t have the ability to do your job.
12. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home.
13. Every commercial on television has a website at the bottom of the screen.
14. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn’t have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.
15. You get up in the morning and go online before getting your coffee.
16. You start tilting your head sideways to smile.
17. You’re reading this and nodding and laughing
18. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.
19. You are too busy to notice there was no #9 on this list.
20. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn’t a #9 on this list.

TJ
..• ´¨¨)) :
¸.•´ .•´¨¨))
((¸¸.•´ ..•´ www.tjmichaels.com :
: ((¸¸.•´* www.dynamicthree.com
CARINIAN’S SEEKER, V.C.O.E. Book 1, Available in digital & print
POUNCE ~ PRYDE ~ JAGUAR’S ~ GIFT WRAP, All at Ellora’s Cave
SERATI’S FLAME, V.C.O.E. Book 2, August 21, 2007
EGYPTIAN VOYAGE ~ Coming Soon, Ellora’s Cave

My kids made me, yes I said MADE me, watch American Idol the other night. One after another, the young and old waltzed in to audition for some of the toughest people in show business. Now, you’d think a person would know they can sing, and also know when the song is closer to that of a walrus in rut calling to a female. The people who veered more toward the large mammal sounds were convinced, either by themselves or the people they love, that they could carry a tune without a bucket. Some were easy on the eyes, others could make a rock cry. A few appeared to be well spoken, while others had the IQ of a soaked raisin.

And most weren’t willing to accept the truth – they couldn’t frickin’ sing.

Then along came one semi-exception…

The woman came right out and said, “I’m not a singer. I didn’t come to this audition because I can sing. I came because you can teach me to sing and I can be the next American Idol because I’m teachable.”

She was willing to be vulnerable – though I must admit the Simon fellow made me want to poke him in the stomach with a blunt object. Nervous, the young lady asked for constructive criticism and was gracious…until she heard the word ‘No.’ After that two letter word, all bets were off and along came the hollering and screaming.

Now what the heck does that have to do with romance?

Well, after watching this girl go bonkers I began to think about books (can’t help it, I’m an author ) and wondered – Can the perfect hero be vulnerable and still have drool-worthy alpha appeal? Hmmm. I think so. But when he hears the word ‘No,’ from his leading lady, does he morph from vulnerable and sincere to determined strong-willed male, or hard-nosed idiot? How far does he have to go before he maxes out at (drum rollllll) … Royal Jerk?

In the tons of romance novels read over the years, surely we’ve all come across a numbskull or two. The tolerance threshold is different for all of us. What is it for you? Come across any romance jerks, lately or long ago? What did they do to yank your chain? Or make you want to yank theirs…and then throw ‘em in a lake?

TJ
..• ´¨¨)) :
¸.•´ .•´¨¨))
((¸¸.•´ ..•´ www.tjmichaels.com :
: ((¸¸.•´* www.dynamicthree.blogspot.com
PRIMED TO POUNCE ~ SPIRIT OF THE PRYDE ~ GIFT WRAP OPTIONAL, Ellora’s Cave
JAGUAR’S RULE, Ellora’s Cave ~ 2006 CAPA Nominee
CARINIAN’S SEEKER, Samhain Publishing ~ Feb 20, 2007
SERATI’S FLAME, Samhain Publishing ~ August 21, 2007
EGYPTIAN VOYAGE, Ellora’s Cave ~ Coming Soon!

TJ taps her over fifteen years experience in technology to create realistic stories with out of this world characters. Working for an interesting organization puts her in close contact with even more interesting people.

And with an imagination expanded beyond belief since the birth of her two now teen-aged children (she’ll never be sane again), spinning life’s experiences into tales is a blast.

And now that books have caught up to technology (she loves her eBookwise!), TJ’s eBook reader is shown no mercy, forced to entertain her at all hours of the day or night. Even in the dark!

Even with seven books sold last year (four released in 2006 and three scheduled for 2007) TJ hasn’t lost steam. Her mind? Yep, that’s gone, but steam there is aplenty. A true Taurus, TJ isn’t slowing down and is definitely too stubborn to stop when she sees the fence!