Hello My Happy People,
When I changed this blog to "Manic Mondays" I had no idea how prophetic that name would be. Today is a good example. I am so far behind in work today because this weekend we developed an electrical problem in our apartment. One of the fuses kept popping off and we kept resetting it, but then it started to spark a little.
Sparks and electrical lines are never good, so of course we let the landlord know. We had been smelling a dead fish smell in the apartment, but we thought it was just our dog passing gas as I had fed him some raw salmon that day. Turns out it was not our dog (I apologize for blaming him), apparently that smell can be an indication that the insulation on electrical wires are overheating.
We unplugged everything that was nonessential and waited for the electrician to show up today to check it all out. Turns out our fuses were not the main problem, the insulation on the wires was virtually gone. Lucilky, we got an electrician here before anything really bad happened. When you live in an old building with old wiring, this can be an issue.
I did lose the whole day of work (I couldn't even play Fortnite to kill the time). I tried for a very short time to use my computer while we waited for the electrician. I unplugged everything else in my office, but even doing that the power drain was still too much. My computer kept shutting off and then it started flashing. That freaked me out. I decided to shut down and unplugged it too so as not to damage it.
I am back up and running now (obviously) and I will be getting this week's podcast edited tonight. I was able to connect with my guest author last week and do the interview ahead of time so I have plenty of time to edit before Wednesday. Thank goodness! I really want you all to meet his author, my friend Kira Hagen.
This week on Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, Kira joins me to talk about her new sci-fi novel Strangeling, Children of the Broken Dawn, Band 1. This is Kira's debut novel and it's really good. To give you a brief idea of what her book is about, I thought I would quote the opening of the description on Amazon.com (<--- link to book).
2049: The elves returned from the stars to save Earth ... and broke everything.
The United States... aren't. Rural Minnesota is a redcap-infested wasteland. The Twin Cities are occupied by fabulous aliens. Waves of wild magic have wrecked most of the world's high technology. People mutate into beings out of myth and legend, becoming strangelings, and are killed or imprisoned lest the Hunger drive them to rampage.
And there's no more Wi-Fi.
Kira does an incredible job blending her own creative storytelling with myths and legends from around the world. Her characters are relatable and realistic even though many are becoming creatures of lore. If you like sci-fi/fantasy, you need to check out Strangling and listen to our chat this Wednesday on Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt.
Now I need to go finish the podcast, add in opening and closing bits, and clean up noise as best as I can (you will hear Kira's birds in the podcast, it was funny and led to an interesting bit about her book), and adjust sound levels. Even fairly clean interviews can take a lot of technical work to get it ready to go. Good thing I love doing all of this!
So I'm off to finish up some work, now it's time for you to go forth and have a great week, people!
Enjoy!
Dianne
Podcast Links
Listen to our podcast, Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt, every Wednesday. Check your favorite podcast provider for listings.
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About Dianne:
What is a Chiari Malformation, a Syrinx (Syringomyelia), and Hydrocephalus?
2022 winner of the SheInspires SHEro award, Global category.
Want to know more about the host of Book Banter with Dianne Burckhardt? Check out Episode 1: Who Am I?
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Support Our Book Banter Buddies (guest interviews):
Sonali Dev, author of The Vibrant Years.
Coming this week:
Kira Hagen, author of Strangeling:
Past Guest Interviews:
Mark L. Redmond website: The Box M Gang (Episode 8: March 23, 2022)
DJ Jamison, Amazon Author Page (Episodes 21 & 22: July 6 & 13, 2022)
Allie "Book Historia" Alvis website (Episodes 23, 24, & 25: July 20 & 27, Aug 3, 2022)
Lisa Sillaway "Social Media Professor" (Episodes 26 & 27: Aug 10 & 17, 2022)
Kara Vogt from Kavo Creative Studio (Episodes 32 & 33: Sept. 21 & 28, 2022)
Wise Oak Soapery on Facebook
Carrie Donovan - writer/musician (Episode 37, October 26, 2022)
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