2025 A to Z Challenge Blog for the Letter I

April 10, 2025. I’m sitting here sipping my coffee and taking a writing break to do the blog post for today and plotting the next scene in my book. I’m almost finished with my romantic comedy. It’s another of my Cocktails For You series. That series was born during COVID when everything seemed as bad as bad could get. I wanted to create something that would make people laugh a bit and sigh when the happily ever after happened.

Many of those books recount my own adventures, so for the most part, they were easy to write. For example, I went to Los Cabos, Mexico and used what I saw for Tequila Sunrise. I’ve been to New York City several times, for Make Mine a Manhattan. We took the Rocky Mountaineer for our 50th anniversary and I even put myself into the story as a minor character in Emerald Glow, and finally, I spent a few days in St. Andrews By the Sea, the setting for Sea Breeze. This book is titled, From Paris With Love. No, it isn’t set in Paris, France, or even Paris, Ontario. Paris is the name of my heroine. Friends of mine have five children, four girls and a boy. Guess which is the youngest? If you said the boy, you’d be right. One of the girls is named Paris. I thought it the perfect name for my story, especially after I found her cocktail.

From Paris With Love, How to Make a Classic Boulevardier Cocktail

While the boulevardier (pronounced bool-ah-vard-ee-a) might be less known than the Negroni it’s derived from, it’s a drink that deserves a place in everyone’s wheelhouse. Having a bourbon base, this drink is a great introduction to bitter or aperitif-style cocktails. Step outside of the typical vodka box with this Jazz Age recipe.

Ingredients:

1½ ounces whiskey

1 ounce Campari

1 ounce sweet vermouth

Ice and king cube

Orange peel for garnish

Instructions

In a mixing glass, add ice, whiskey, Campari, and sweet vermouth.

Stir rapidly to chill.

Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice or king cube.

Garnish with an orange peel.

And thus, From Paris With Love was born. Since today’s letter is I, it seems the perfect time to talk about the importance of imagination to a writer. While a title is critical to the way my mind creates a story, it also needs a plot and an outstanding cover. I went digging into the depths of my brain to find a plot that was original, but that would be easy to write about, and my cover artist outdid herself again. Here’s what we created.

Book Description:

When Paris Galanis’s novella, Captive Hearts, written under a pseudonym, wins a writing contest, the hair salon owner is both elated and terrified. While all she’d expected was feedback on her entry, what should be a dream come true becomes a nightmare.

The publisher’s decision to serialize her novella on their website sends her into panic mode. The last thing she wanted was for the people of Timberton to read her story and recognize themselves, especially the town’s most popular bachelor.

While all the single ladies in town view Russ Templeton, the owner of Hunter’s Haven, the town’s only bar and grill, as a ruggedly, handsome, dream catch, Paris sees him as an obnoxious, self-centered jerk with commitment issues that date back to high school when he nicknamed her PG, the Greek geek girl, and made her life miserable. When someone leaves a copy of a particularly steamy chapter of the serialized story on the bar, he’s more than a little curious about the local author who writes with such passion and is determined to find out all he can about Sahara Winters. Who better to ask for help and advice than Paris? After all, eventually, every woman in town sits in one of her chairs.

When she seems unable to find the mysterious author, he decides to offer a reward to the person who reveals the identity of the writer. When the town’s resident gossips and matchmakers decide to get in on the action, keeping her secret will be harder than ever. Opposites attract, and when they connect, anything can happen.

Just a case of letting my imagination run wild!

The book will be realeased in mid-May as part of a multi-book box set. Visit the blog next month to learn more. I found this cute meme that describes imagination well. What most adults lack today is the innocence and imagination they had as children.

Before I leave you this morning, I have a great deal to pass along. The Unforgettable Revenge box set featuring my novel, Fire Angel, will be free –that’s right. Here’s your chance to pick up seven full-length novels written by NYT bestselling authors free on April 12, 2025. Mark your calendars. If you want to see how wild my imagination can get, check it out. https://mybook.to/uRevenge

So, here’s my song for the day.

Cme back tomorrow for the letter J. Find other bloggers here: MASTER LIST https://tinyurl.com/tauke86z