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Tagged: Contemporary Romance
TRB Interviews Leslie Scott – September 2020
Author Interviews / Book Promotions
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Jenn sits down once again with Leslie Scott to talk about the release of Full Tilt Boogie
Back in March 2019, Jenn sat down with Leslie Scott, to talk about book two in her Arkadia Fast, Contemporary Romance series: Hot Lap. A third book was just released in that series, and Jenn and Leslie sat down to chat about Full Tilt Boogie and more!
Jenn: It's been a year and a half since the last time we sat down to talk, and you just released another book in August. Tell us what's been happening in the interim.
Leslie: Oh my goodness, so much.
I revamped my brand and my website, so that it encompassed me as a writer, not just a romance writer.
I won an award for my soon to be released Urban Fantasy novel.
Jenn: Congratulations on the award!
Leslie: Thanks! I am going indie, with Black Water Magic (the UF novel I just mentioned), as you said Full Tilt Boogie FINALLY came out… And I've got three other novels in the works, right now. So, yeah, the writing cave has been a madhouse
Leslie: That's about it. lol
My son is thirteen and in middle school, so he's mostly doing everything himself. Which gives me more time to write.
I'm also doing more writing workshops and the like.
Stepping into the Indie Publishing world has been really time consuming and stressful for me. And there were some hiccups and roadblocks earlier this year that sort of ground everything to a halt.
Jenn: I hear that a lot from authors moving to Indie Publishing – it's stressful and time consuming.
Leslie: I had to take a bit of a step back, play some video games, go camping with the family (we love our RV), but pretty much I'm a writer and a mother, those are the two biggest things in my life.
And it really is. I've heard large house traditional publishing is, too. But I come from a laid back, small press, where the stress level is low. At The Wild Rose Press, I'm responsible for marketing my finished product and writing it. Everything else, they handle. Formatting, Editing, Cover Design, Distribution, payment, etc.
Jenn: So, the transition to Indie – at least, the marketing part – is already there in your toolbelt?
Leslie: Yes. Thankfully.
Though, book marketing is ever changing. So, I'm constantly learning and trying new things. I'm looking forward to running Amazon Ads with Black Water Magic. I can't do that with my current books, because the publisher uploads them not me.
Jenn: Have you always wanted to write and publish your work?
Leslie: Since third grade.
I actually never thought I'd self publish, but the trend of authors who make money seem to be a hybrid published deal (so self and trad published). I figured, this is a career so why not try.
Jenn: Who are the major influencers in your life and philosophy?
Leslie: Oh wow.
My mom and my son are big influences for me to write. The kid gets more excited when I get good reviews than I do. And he loves to tell everyone I write. Mom is constantly wanting to read what I write.
Jenn: That's awesome that you have so much support close to home!
Leslie: In the industry itself, I have this web of writer friends–some best sellers, some pre-published that really keep me going.
For instance: Melissa Sercia and I switched to each other's published genre and decided to self publish AT THE SAME TIME. So I wrote an Urban Fantasy and she wrote a Romance. And we are taking this journey sort of together, which has been super cool. But that family feel of my writing tribe is an influence. But there really isn't one author or authors where I was like "I want to be like them."
Jenn: Talk about fun!
Leslie: I guess,because I was always a writer. Nobody I'm trying to emulate, just getting my stories on paper.
Jenn: Whatever works to beat that procrastination habit, right?
Leslie: And my philosophy, according to my kid, would be "Get to Work!" which is true. Like you said, to beat that procrastination habit. Which he has inherited. So I say those three words, a lot.
Jenn: The mantra of every school-at-home mom?
Leslie: Indeed. But, I apply it to writing. I've met so many pre-published writers who I constantly tell, "If you don't finish the book, it's never going to be published." No matter how many conferences you go to, classes you take, books you read, if you don't "Get to Work" it's not going to happen.
It took me a decade to figure that out.
Jenn: Indeed.
Leslie: Once I did, the ideas and the stories keep going. Since 2017 (When The Finish Line was released, my first novel) I've finished 10 books.
Jenn: Awesome. That's a LOT of books in 3 years.
Leslie: Now, not all of them are published (or worth being published), obviously, but getting to work gets that first draft finished.
Heh, you should see my outline notebooks. I outline ideas/novels in spiral notebooks (I'm addicted to sparkly school supplies). I have, right now, two filing cabinet drawers full.
Jenn: So you're both a planner AND a back-to-school junkie?
Leslie: Yes!!!!!
OMG, yes.
I love my planner, I Love my pens, I love my notebooks, I color code my book notes, I'm addicted to post it notes
Jenn: *cough cough* We won't talk about post-it notes… I have stacks and stacks and stacks of notebooks, post-it's, moveable flags…
Leslie: Yup. We should start a support group.
Oh! They brought back Lisa Frank stuff this year. Eight year old me lost her mind at Walmart. Mr. Scott was like, "Save some for the kids, okay?"
Jenn: That hasn't quite made it this far west yet. Thankfully. The 15 year old would go nuts. As it is, I buy about 4 times as many school supplies as she does.
Leslie: lol… The 13 yo is male and only has one school supply request: mechanical pencils.
I have ten different types of Sharpies. So, yeah, I have way more supplies.
Jenn: What other books or authors have influenced your writing? Especially the Arkadia Fast series?
Leslie: Hrm … Abbi Glines and her way of encompassing the way it feels to be that college, young person was a big deal.
But my biggest influence for the Arkadia Fast series were street racing Youtube videos.
(and Mr. Scott watching them)
Jenn: Mr. Scott is a huge racing fan, as I recall.
Leslie: And he is a car nut and races and we've been to street races. Yup.
He just got a new toy (a 69 Ford Truck) that he's dropping a new motor in.
Jenn: Their toys only get more expensive, the older they get, right?
Leslie: Truth. A fact I point out to him when he tells me I need to slow down buying highlighters on Amazon.
Jenn: Harsh!
Leslie: LOL
Jenn: Since we're talking Arkadia Fast and your most recent release, If you had to explain this series in one sentence, what would it be?
Leslie: Fast paced, energetic romance.
A reviewer for InD'Tale Magazine used that line to describe it once and was so perfect, I kept it.
I wanted energy and emotion at a high rate of speed for the reader. I didn't want to give them a chance to put any of the books down.
That's way more than one sentence, oops.
Jenn: You definitely accomplish that.
For our readers who are unfamiliar with your work, could you give us a quick elevator pitch for each book in the series?
Leslie: OMG, I hate pitches
Jenn: Heh
Leslie: The Finish Line is about love and family, and how a young woman navigates all those things under the shadow of tragedy and loss.
Hot Lap is about finding your family, even if it's in an un-traditional manner. And that we create our own families out of those we love.
Full Tilt Boogie is book 3 in the Arkadia Fast series – Contemporary Romance by Leslie Scott
Full Tilt Boogie is finding home, when it's always been there. And that sometimes your dreams are different than you imagine and come in a snarky, surly package.
Jenn: I think Noah is, by far, my favorite of the Arkadia boys.
Leslie: That was my favorite book to write of any I've written.
Mainly because Breanna is not your traditional romance heroine.
Jenn: She isn't. Not by a long shot.
Leslie: And I almost made that elevator pitch for you just two words: "Crotch Fruit."
Jenn: *snicker* That epithet is going to stay with me for a long, long time.
Leslie: Hahaha me too! Someone told me to take it out and I was like, "No, because the reaction is totally natural for her."
Breanna is definitely nonconforming and does her own thing. Which makes her the exact opposite of her sister Raelynn (from The Finish Line) and in truth, Full Tilt Boogie is Breanna's redemption. Because she's sort of a jerk in TFL.
Jenn: How challenging was it to create a likeable heroine that has been so disagreeable in previous books?
Leslie: Very. But that's why it was so much fun. I can't write hollow characters. I want them to be beautifully flawed and Breanna is a perfect example of that.
In Full Tilt Boogie I got to examine her actions from The Finish Line, find where they came from, and realize they came from a place of love. She's young, hot headed, and makes a lot of mistakes, but she loves her family and wants them ALL to be happy. But she's selfish.
Noah teaches her how to be less selfish. Which is part of growing up and one of the most challenging parts of writing New Adult books.
At that age, we are all a good deal selfish and immature. Throw in love, sex, hormones, and life challenges and its like a ticking emotion bomb.
Jenn: And Noah delivers those lessons beautifully.
Leslie: Awe thanks.
Also, I really wanted to twist the trope that I wrote book one with.
Raelynn was pining away from Jordan from the jump. It was cool to show the readers that Noah had been doing the same thing, even in Hot Lap — when he was a pain in Breanna's ass (as she says).
Jenn: Truth.
You write romance, (and really awesome romance, at that!) and Arkadia Fast isn't all you have in your backlist. You mentioned that you've written 10 books since The Finish Line was released in 2017. What other books or stories can we find with your name on them?
Leslie: Right, now, other than Arkadia Fast, I have the novella Two Hearts, One Stone.
Jenn: I think Two Hearts was the first of your books that I got to read.
Leslie: And the Urban Fantasy, Black Water Magic, to be released sometime this year (soon, I say, soon!)
Readers LOVE Stone.
Jenn: Because he's awesome.
Leslie: And because of that love, my current Work In Progress is another cowboy novel. This time, a series.
Well, one reader did not like him.
If you go look at the reviews, she minces no words when she calls him a man whore. (I still laugh about this)
Jenn: Meh…. I can't think of anyone (real or fictional) that is loved by EVERYONE that meets them.
Leslie: Indeed not, but it's still funny. I think if I elicit some sort of reaction (good or bad) in a reader … I've done my job.
Jenn: What are some of the major ideas that you incorporate into your books, and your life, in general?
Leslie: Family.
That's the core of all my books. It doesn't matter what genre, what style, family is important. And family is what you make it. You don't have to be born into it.
And that's my real life. My closest family member outside my household is my ex-stepsister. Our parents (her mom, my dad) were divorced two decades ago. But, we're still family.
Jenn: You've mentioned your Urban Fantasy, but will we be hearing more from the Casey family?
Leslie: I don't know.
I had planned on staying with just the Casey Siblings. Then I had an editor want three more. But, then that editor left the publisher. (a look behind the curtain here) … When she left, that put things up in the air and they're still there. I have ideas/outlines for three more Arkadia Fast novels. But, I'm really not sure if they'll get written anytime soon. As I'm working on three other series (including the UF) right now.
Jenn: You've mentioned this Urban Fantasy coming soon. Tell us a bit about Black Water Magic.
Leslie: Black Water Magic is the story of Teagan Blackwater. It's magic, murder, mayhem, cursed witches, and demi-demon bikers. A sexy look at the supernatural community of Firewater Springs, Florida.
Jenn: That sounds like fun!
Leslie: Teagan's grandmother Nola, is the Swamp Witch of Florida. But, Teagan comes home one night to find Nola murdered. Digging into the whys and the hows, she opens up a world of secrets and the like she never expected. Basically, she has to navigate her messed up love life, the death of her only family, and newfound powers.
Jenn: Growing up on a whole other level?
Leslie: Yup.
LOL but I took the ensemble cast of characters that is my style and applied it to the paranormal universe. I envision spinoffs galore.
Jenn: Sounds like a fertile garden for more stories.
Leslie: Book two is already in the works, and the first spinoff series is already outlined, and I'm thinking of doing a YA Spinoff via my website and NL. Just off this series, lol.
Jenn: In our last talk, you mentioned getting into the Radish fiction app. Did that take off?
Leslie: Okay so, that's where BWM came from.
Jenn: Gotcha. So was BWM initially released as a serialized novel?
Leslie: Never released, actually. As I was writing it took on a life of its own and became a novel, not a serial.
Actually came two novels, lol.
Jenn: Awesome.
Is there anything else that readers should know, or that you'd like them to know, before delving into your books?
Leslie: Hrm. I tend to write on the steamy side, but also I'm big on feeling and emotion. And I don't always make things pretty. I've tackled PTSD, alcoholism, drug addiction, and sexual abuse in some degree in my books.
So while some may automatically think romance is fluff, mine isn't.
Jenn: I think there's a lot more to romance than fluff, but I'm biased.
Leslie: Same, lol.
Jenn: How can readers find you?
Leslie: Readers can find me one my website (which is new and pretty, yay)… http://lesliescottwrites.com, where they can also subscribe to my newsletter. My blog and Newsletter are why you can get all the current details of what I have going on. On social media I am most active on Twitter (@leslieSwrites), but also on facebook.com/lesliescottwrites.com
Jenn: Thank you so much for joining us today, Leslie. It has been, as always, a pleasure talking to you!
Leslie: Thank you for having me, I love chatting with you. It's always a good time.
Also by Leslie Scott:
Two Hearts, One Stone
The Finish Line (Book 1 – Arkadia Fast)
Hot Lap (Book 2 – Arkadia Fast)
Full Tilt Boogie (Book 3 – Arkadia Fast)
Full Tilt Boogie
TRB reviews Leslie Scott's Full Tilt Boogie
Full Tilt Boogie; Leslie Scott
New Adult; Romance; 262 Pages
Publisher – Date published
Breanna Casey has only ever wanted two things in life: to race and to get the hell out of Arkadia, Texas. Stifled beneath her family's turbo-charged reputation, she's got her thumb firmly on the self-destruct button. A night of hyper-driven racing and rebellion leads to a one night stand with the one guy who knows how to press all her buttons: Noah McKay.
Torn apart by the toll of his high-intensity enlistment in the Marines and guilt-ridden by what he's seen, Noah McKay left the military to find peace. A chance encounter sends him working for the parents of a raven-haired Amazon goddess with a tongue that cuts sharper than any knife. Quiet is the last thing he'll get.
Finally, she gets her chance. Calloway Racing wants her to drive for them. But that's not all they want. A good friend of her father's, Calloway insists she take Noah along for the ride. Suddenly, her dreams are feeling more like a nightmare. Will they be able to help each other, maybe even find love, when living life full tilt boogie?
Award winning author of Two Hearts, One Stone and the Arkadia Fast Series, Leslie Scott has been writing stories for as long as she can remember. The happier the ending, the better. Currently, she lives and writes amidst her own happily ever after with her soul mate, son, and domestic zoo. http://www.lesliescottwrites.com
Reviewer's Review
The good folks at Casey Performance are back in the third installment of Leslie Scott's Arkadia Fast series. Strap in and hang on for the wild ride that is the love story between Breanna Casey and Noah McKay.
Breanna's the baby of a family that revolves around racing. Her big sister's getting married. Her brother's getting married. It seems that everyone she loves is changing and moving on – leaving her behind. What's worse, her father refuses to let her do what she truly desires: racing.
Noah wants peace. Quiet. A refuge from the dark memories playing havoc in his brain after the violence of an Army deployment. He seems to have found a home with the Casey family business, and he'd rather not lose what little peace he's found.
Except that Breanna's on a path to self-destruction. When Noah steps up to stop a drunken assault on Breanna, things between the two heat up. And like the street and drag race cars they work on, their relationship goes from zero to too-fast… overnight. Too bad the two get along like cats and dogs.
Fast paced and well-executed as the first two books in the series, Full Tilt Boogie will pull you along (yeah, it was another late night as I read this one in a single sitting). Breanna's fate has been three books in the making, and Noah is entirely lovable for all his quiet calm and broodiness. This novel can be read as a standalone, but some events will be more relatable if you read the previous two novels.
This book is available in Kindle and paperback editions here.
Also by Leslie Scott
Two Hearts, One Stone (Standalone Cowboy Romance Novella)
The Finish Line (Book 1, Arkadia Fast)
Hot Lap (Book 2, Arkadia Fast)
Interview with Leslie Scott, 2019
Updated Interview with Leslie Scott, 2020
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The Lieutenants' Online Love
Jenn reviews Caro Carson's The Lieuntenants' Online Love
The Lieutenants' Online Love; Caro Carson
Adult; Contemporary Romance; 224 Pages
Harlequin Special Edition; Original edition (May 1, 2018)
What happens when your internet crush…
Shows up in real life?
First Lieutenant Thane Carter has experienced great success as the senior platoon leader of a military police company at Fort Hood. But tbh, his love life stinks. Thane wishes his maddening—and off-limits—new coworker, Lieutenant Chloe Michaels, could be more like his online friend "BallerinaBaby." It's complicated, all right—especially when Thane learns that his workplace nemesis and his internet crush are one and the same!
Despite a no-nonsense background as a West Point graduate and U.S. Army officer, Caro Carson has always treasured the happily-ever-after of a good romance novel. After her military service, she worked in the healthcare industry with a Fortune 100 company, talking science with doctors who were rarely handsome bachelor Texans like the doctors in her books. Now a USA Today bestselling author and RITA™award winner, Caro is delighted to be living her own happily-ever-after with her husband (who actually is a handsome Texan) and their two children. They live in the great state of Florida, a location which has saved the coaster-loving theme park fanatics a fortune on plane tickets.
Jenn's Review
Typically, I'm on the fence about military romance, as a former Army wife and Army civilian. I love the love stories, but frequently, the [military] lifestyle is romanticized and my enjoyment is killed by the "I'm pretty sure someone's going to at least get a counseling statement off that…" reality-check in the back of my head. So when I met Ms. Carson at a romance lit convention and had the opportunity to talk to her about The Lieutenants' Online Love, her personal experience with military law and her attention to detail just on the cover sold me on giving this one a try.
Thane Carter would love to have a life outside his career as a military police officer. Sadly, his only success so far has been with a whimsical online relationship with a woman he knows only as "BallerinaBaby". His dreams take a downhill slide when the gorgeous woman he meets at an apartment complex barbeque turns out to be the new coworker in his company on Fort Hood.
Chloe Michaels is fresh out of West Point and already tired of the attitude she gets as a new lieutenant in Fort Hood's military police force. She's a woman. She's a West Point grad. And the guys, especially Lieutenant Carter, all expect nothing but failure and weakness as she works her way into her new position. Only her online friend, "DifferentDrummer", seems to have any faith in her ability to do her job and do it well. And while he's there to listen when she needs an understanding shoulder to lean on, she has to be careful about the details of her life. They had an agreement, after all.
Carter and Michaels clash in the office and on patrol, delicately dancing around military regulations as they each struggle with their love-hate relationship. And when Carter discovers that BallerinaBaby is closer than he realizes, the tensions ratchet up several notches.
I blew threw this book in one sitting, then picked it up and read it again the next day. I appreciate Ms. Carson's respect of military law (and not bending around it to make things simpler), and her attention to the little details. With a background in military law running through my own marriage, I didn't find myself sitting back and asking Hubby (a former Army JAG paralegal) if something sounded off to him. At. All.
I'm impressed and working my way through my TBR pile to make room for some more Caro Carson.
Braking Hard
Jenn reviews Gloria Joynt-Lang's Braking Hard
Braking Hard; Gloria Joynt-Lang
Adult; Romance; 204 pages
The Wild Rose Press, Inc; 1 edition (February 12, 2020)
Gage O'Neill is an all-around nice guy and an Adonis in coveralls. With a thriving automotive business, a gorgeous girlfriend, and his ADHD under control, life is pretty incredible. But when he loses a loved one, Gage's perfect world unravels. Prone to bad choices, he's desperate to quell his rash behavior. Thankfully, hiring a curvy mechanic is the one impulsive decision he's gotten right.
Eden Sampario is destitute as a result of a confrontation turned violent with her former employer. When Gage mistakenly offers her a job, she readily accepts. But soon she wonders if she made the right decision. Resisting her sexy boss proves more challenging than an engine rebuild. Her only other option? Give in to temptation and risk not only her career but also her heart.
Welcome to Big C's automotive shop, a place where more than cars overheat.
Gloria Joynt-Lang was born in France and raised in various locales throughout Canada. Before she started writing contemporary romance, she worked in the criminal justice system—technically spending time behind bars.
As a Canadian, she's fanatic about hockey, poutine, and apologizing.
She currently resides in rural Alberta with her husband and their two dogs.
Gloria Joynt-Lang is earning her chops as a sensitive author of neurodiverse characters in romance fiction, with her second book, Braking Hard, which features a strong female lead in a nontraditional career and a male protagonist coping with adult ADHD.
Gage is nothing short of determined. The owner of an auto repair shop in a small Oregon coastal town, each day is a struggle to stay focused on the things he needs to accomplish while managing his employees and a failing relationship. His mentor passes away suddenly, and Gage is sent adrift, trying to find his feet on his own. When he's forced to fire one of his mechanics, he faces further challenges finding someone qualified. Until he stumbles upon "Ed's" resume.
Eden's life was turned upside down in a moment of violence when her boss makes inappropriate sexual advances and threatens her. She's lost her job and she's on the edge of losing everything else. While she's a good mechanic and technician, finding another job in the career she loves is challenging – men either don't believe she can do the work, or she's subjected to demeaning and dehumanizing work conditions as a woman. When she learns that a former teacher has passed away, she makes an effort to attend his wake and runs into Gage.
Ms. Joynt-Lang treats her characters' challenges with tenderness and honesty in this story that might just have been written about the little coastal town I live in. She nails the quirky nature of the town's inhabitants and weaves together all the little ways that people intersect in a tiny town. Gage's struggle with his ADHD is real and honest. Eden's challenges as a woman in a male-dominated career field are honest.
Quirky, funny, and touching, I would recommend Braking Hard to fans of contemporary romance. It's the first in a new series, and I eagerly look forward to the next installment.
This book is available in Kindle and paperback here.
Also by Gloria Joynt-Lang
Beyond Circumstances
Author Interview with Gloria Joynt-Lang for Braking Hard
Gloria Joynt-Lang Interview – Braking Hard
Jenn interviews contemporary romance author Gloria Joynt-Lang for the release of her newest novel, Braking Hard
A few years back, Thrice Read Books had the privilege of sitting down with debut author Gloria Joynt-Lang to talk about her first novel, Beyond Circumstances. Unfortunately, a few months after the release, the publishing house had to close its doors, and Ms. Joynt-Lang's book was off the market. We're very excited to welcome her back to our bookshelves with her release of Braking Hard.
Jenn: Could you tell our readers a little about your new novel, Braking Hard?
Gloria: Braking Hard is a contemporary romance novel set in a fictional coastal town in Oregon. It follows Gage O'Neill a mechanic with ADHD who happens to be the co-owner of Big C's Automotive. When his business partner passes away, Gage's life unravels. Navigating through his own grief leads to a series of mishaps. In an effort to stop Big C's from tanking, Gage hires Eden Sampario, a woman who's had her own struggles. Working in a male-dominated profession has taken a toll on her. The last thing she needs is to complicate her life by dating the boss. Braking Hard is a friends-to-lovers romance with a unique neurodiversity twist.
Jenn: How long has Braking Hard been in the making?
Gloria: I started writing Braking Hard two years ago. I had a few obstacles along the way including searching for a new publisher. I also went through a bit of health issue which derailed me from writing. I ended up with daily headaches and light sensitivity issues. For several months I couldn't even check my emails let alone open my laptop. Blue light from electronic devices is the worst. Fortunately, it turned out to be a pinched nerve and thus treatable. Numerous trips to the chiropractor and yoga sessions helped me to realign my body. I was so thankful when the problem went away as I feared my writing days were over. I'm pretty much back to where I was before.
Jenn: I imagine there was considerable research with Braking Hard? How did you approach the research?
Gloria: I love doing research as it's an opportunity to experience new things. For Braking Hard I convinced my husband we needed to take a road trip to the Oregon coast. We still talk about how much fun we had. It was quite an adventure. We booked this old Airstream trailer in a farmer's field one night. The on-line pictures seemed rather quaint. Other than the small mattress, it was kind of romantic. The only problem was that by the time we arrived down a very narrow road late at night, we were exhausted. Thankfully, our hosts had pancake mix, s'mores and a bottle of wine for us. Who would have thought red wine pairs so nicely with flapjacks? We took our two small dogs with us. A lot of places ban pets on the beach but not Oregon. I would go back in a second.
Other parts of the research dealt with talking to people with ADHD and hours reading about the disorder. This was more difficult. Peoples' experiences differ and there's some contradictory information. I tried to focus on the commonalities of people with ADHD while being respectful of how different people handle the challenges. In Braking Hard there's a scene where Gage opens up to Eden about his struggles and what works and doesn't work for him. I believe it's done in a respectful manner and doesn't discount the variety of therapies and medication available to help people manage.
Jenn: What inspired Gage and Eden's story?
Gloria: There's a fair amount of information and dialogue on kids with ADHD, but we often forget about the adults. There's a percentage of kids with ADHD who symptoms lessen as they get older, but for some, it's a lifelong battle. I wanted to show not only the struggles but also a man who's successful. There are positive aspects of ADHD and these traits help Gage when it comes to being a mechanic and also a friend.
When it came to Eden, my goal was to create a feminine character who's independent and tough with a degree of vulnerability. She's in a male-dominated profession and had some horrible experiences with men. Her family situation is so different than Gage. He comes from a large family. They're boisterous and meddlesome but love him with great intensity. With Eden there's just her and her mom. They have a strained relationship because of her mother's choices. Eden's vulnerability comes from wanting to fit in both at work and in the community but also afraid of getting too close to others. People have this annoying tendency to disappoint.
Jenn: Is this your first published novel?
Gloria: No, this is the second one. My first novel was published in 2018. Unfortunately, a few months after Beyond Circumstances' release, the publisher ended up closing shop. At the time I was devasted, but I learned a lot from that experience. The rights were returned to me, so I plan to relaunch it. I have two other novels as part of that series which I'm polishing up and hoping to get published.
Braking Hard is published through The Wild Rose Press and is the first in the Storm Harbor series. I already started on the next book and I've got some great ideas for the third.
Jenn: What advice would you give to aspiring authors looking to get published?
Gloria: Rejection is part of the process. It's extremely rare for an author to be offered a contract on their first query. Most of us get turned down numerous times, especially on the first book. If you find you're getting rejected a crazy amount of times, look at what you can do differently. Is it your story, your writing style, poor grammar? Some agents and publishers tell you what you're doing wrong. Beta readers and critique partners also help to point you in the right direction.
Jenn: Are you are a pantser or a planner when it comes to your writing style?
Gloria: I'm more of a pantser. I do jot a few ideas as they come to me and try to organize them into a scene, but normally I just type as it flows from my brain. Perhaps that's why I spend a considerable amount of time doing self-edits and chopping out the excessive wordage.
Jenn: So, Braking Hard hits the shelves February 12, but you mentioned that you have more in the works for this series. Care to elaborate.
Gloria: The second novel in the Storm Harbor Series follows Gage's cousin Cole. There are a few signs in Braking Hard that Cole is ready to settle down. Cole's a bit of wild one so he needs a woman who will challenge him. Expect some fireworks in this enemies-to-lovers story. And there's going to be a cat in it. I'm a dog lover so felines are foreign territory to me. I doubt I'll be able to convince my husband we need to adopt a cat—in the name of research—so I'll be turning to readers to educate me on all things feline.
Jenn: On behalf of Thrice Read Books, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to talk today.
Braking Hard (coming soon)
Buy Braking Hard
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The Finish Line
Jenn reviews book 1 in Leslie Scott's Arkadia Fast series, The Finish Line
The Finish Line; Leslie Scott
The Wild Rose Press, Inc. (Champagne Rose) (December 11, 2017)
Another night at the races is more than burnt rubber with a hit of nitrous. For one young woman, it's navigating trauma, love, and loss in the stifling Texas heat under the watchful gaze of her brother's best friend and reigning King of the Streets, Jordan Slater. Home in Arkadia again, Raelynn Casey starts to heal from a terrible incident at college. She finds love in Jordan, a member of her brother's circle of racing buddies. When another in the racing circle, the guy who took her to her high school prom, exposes his feelings for Raelynn, tragedy erupts like a tank of race fuel. Guilt, remorse, and pain must be overcome before Raelynn and Jordan can race to The Finish Line.
Award-nominated author of Two Hearts, One Stone and the Arkadia Fast Series, Leslie Scott has been writing stories for as long as she can remember. The happier the ending, the better. Currently, she lives and writes amidst her own happily ever after with her soul mate, son, and a domestic zoo. http://lesliescottromance.com/
Leslie Scott brings the high-octane, sizzling romance to her readers in book 1 of the Arkadia Fast series, The Finish Line.
Raelynn Casey comes from a family steeped in street racing, and she's just returned home from a disastrous attempt at running away from everything she's known. What else can a girl do when the man she's loved all her life tells her he doesn't want her? Problem is, running away only created more problems, and Raelynn isn't about to tell her family, let alone her adrenaline junkie friends, any of whom would happily rearrange the face of the man who hurt her.
Jordan Slater? He tried his best to pretend he doesn't want Raelynn, because one of his best friends would be crushed. But he can see the shadows lurking in Rae's eyes, and with his own past haunting him, he finagles his way past her defenses to get to the painful truth.
As Jordan and Raelynn grow closer, will their love and friendship last when disaster claims the life of someone they both love?
Leslie Scott drives this story forward with emotional and sexual tension that pulls out all the stops. I'd already read book 2 in this series, and I was still swept away with every twist and turn in this plot. Hot contemporary romance at high speed.
This book is available in Kindle, Audiobook and Paperback here.
Two Hearts, One Stone (Stand-Alone Novella)
Hot Lap (Book 2 Arkadia Fast)
Full Tilt Boogie (Book 3, Arkadia Fast)
Author Interview, 2019
Updated Interview, 2020
Chasing Lightning Bugs
Jenn reviews JL Keathley's Chasing Lightning Bugs
Chasing Lightning Bugs; JL Keathley
Teen/Young Adult; Romance; 138 Pages
Merfire Publishing (August 15, 2019)
Angel is a surfer from California. He has money and an ego to go with it. Before his grand college adventure, he gets booted off to Arkansas for the summer to visit his dad. He believes it's a cruel, unusual punishment and that this will be the worst time of his life, but he couldn't be more wrong…
Faith is a waitress at the local diner in a small town in southern Arkansas. Happy and not expecting life to change much, her only goal was to support her family. She never thought everything could change so much in one summer, some for the better and some for the worst.
Faith and Angel are from completely different worlds, but it doesn't matter. Sometimes fate has a plan for you, even if you don't have one for yourself…
。☆✼★J.L. Keathley is a self-published author who focuses on YA Fantasy. She lives in Arkansas with her husband and two daughters. She loves animals and has a variety of pets. She has always loved to read and decided to write what she wants to read about. She likes to travel with her family and find adventures.★✼☆。
Distant Memories (The Shadow Realm, Book 1) Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/t6-d3zWgFk8
。・:*:・゚★,。・:*:・゚☆ 。・:*:・゚★,。・:*:・゚☆
Amazon Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B2GYGKT
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17740041.J_L_Keathley
GoodReads Book Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38743860-distant-memories
J.L. Keathley Blog:
https://jlkeathleyyaauthor.wordpress.com/
J.L. Keathley Facebook:
https://facebook.com/J.L.Keathley/
J.L. Keathley Twitter:
https://twitter.com/jlk_ya_author
J.L. Keathley Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/j.l.keathley/
Young adult author, JL Keathley, branches out into Contemporary YA Romance in her new release, Chasing Lightning Bugs. California bad boy meets Sweet Southern girl in this inspirational, happily ever after perfect for young teens.
Angel is a California city-boy who loves to surf, hang out with pretty girls, and generally postpone the doom and gloom of college and adult-hood. So when his mom tells him it's time to catch the plane that will take him to the tiny town of Fouke, Arkansas for a visit with his dad, he did what teens do best – he procrastinated and complained. He doesn't want to spend his summer in a little hick-town with nothing to do.
Faith just wants to live her quiet little life in Fouke. The people there are friendly, she loves her church, her sister, and her mom, and she sees no reason to even look twice at the pretty city boy. He'll just leave at the end of summer, and she's got her priorities straight.
So when Angel proves there's more than what she can see on the surface, she does her best to hold him at bay. Until her life starts to fall apart, and he offers her a shoulder to lean on and blows all her preconceived notions out the window.
Ms. Keathley presents a sweet little love story with a true happy-ever-after in this little volume. Its simple voice and diminutive length will have you adding her other work to your to-be-read pile.
This book is available on Kindle here.
Also by JL Keathley
Distant Memories (Shadow Realms book 1)
Distant Memories (Book 1, The Shadow Realm series)
Tell Me What You Want
Jenn reviews Susan Sheehey's contemporary romance novella Tell Me What You Want
Tell Me What You Want;
Susan Sheehey
Susan Sheehey (January 4, 2018)
The Cardinal rule for Knights is never fall for a client.
But in a business where rules are meant to be broken, how can he resist…
Book One – Renner
Showing a woman her worth is his specialty.
Renner Shaw's priority as a Knight—a luxury escort with Knights of Texas—is making clients feel safe and secure. Intimacy is a perk, and one of his fortes. A position he was surprised to be well suited for with his charm and unrivaled focus. But he never expected the likes of Cassie Summer to come calling.
Cassie never expected to call an escort for the sole purpose of helping her sleep after a sudden tragedy. She certainly never anticipated the sizzling Renner Shaw would be the light that helps guide her out of grief. Only, it may be too late to salvage her splintered heart.
Making his client feel safe and secure is harder than Renner ever imagined, but he's determined to fulfill his role to perfection. To change her gray and dreary world into one of colorful pleasure.
Knights of Texas novella series
Now accepting clients.
Noble pleasure seekers bring their expertise to showing a woman her true worth.
Revealing a woman's value is their devoted mission. These southern charmers can all but guarantee kindling a woman's heart.
Susan writes contemporary romance, romantic suspense and women's fiction. Water plays a crucial element in all of her novels, and she's a strong advocate for Autism Awareness. She tried to give up Diet Coke, and it didn't take. Susan lives and laughs in Texas with her husband and two sons.
Follow her at www.SusanSheehey.com or on Facebook and Twitter. Join her monthly newsletter for goodies and sneak peeks.
https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/p5b0i9
If you have a kind heart, send Diet Coke so I can keep writing more books!
~Escape in romance and suspense!
Jenn's Review:
I found a novella that was both sweet and steamy, with a satisfying ending in Susan Sheehey's Tell Me What You Want. Who knew being a male escort could lead a man to the woman of his dreams?
Renner's a man with a history – and not the warm fuzzy kind of history. So when his friends dupe him into his first gig as a gigolo, he's surprised to find that his skills as a lover can, in fact, go hand in hand with his skills as a bodyguard. He's charming and focused, and very good at giving women what they're looking for as a high-end escort.
Cassie just wants a full night's sleep, which she hasn't had since the tragedy that ripped her husband out of her life. Now, she's juggling life without a partner and a traumatized son, nightmares and loneliness. Who knew an escort would not only help her get a good night's sleep but would also start piecing her broken heart back together?
Tell Me What You Want is, for the most part, a sweet romance, with a few sensual scenes that follow the midpoint. Ms. Sheehey builds the suspense and character development subtly, rocketing her readers through a beautifully developed story, drops readers off a cliff in the Black Moment, and then ties it all up in a neat bow for a satisfying conclusion.
The Greatest Risk
Jenn reviews her first Kristen Ashely book, The Greatest Risk
The Greatest Risk; Kristen Ashley
Adult; Erotica; 592 Pages
St. Martin's Griffin (May 1, 2018)
A woman, unable to connect, struggling to hide another part of her. A man burning to learn her truth, and make her whole. Through explosive passion and deep exploration, they are about to take the greatest risk of all. But will they be able to take that leap, and come out on the other side together? In this next passionate novel in the Honey series, New York Times bestselling author Kristen Ashley delivers a stunningly romantic and intensely sexy novel that will stay with you long after you turn the final page.
Kristen Ashley is the New York Times bestselling author of over sixty romance novels including the Rock Chick, Colorado Mountain, Dream Man, Chaos, Unfinished Heroes, The 'Burg, Magdalene, Fantasyland, The Three, Ghost and Reincarnation and Honey series along with several standalone novels.
She's a hybrid author, publishing titles both independently and traditionally, her books have been translated in fourteen languages and she's sold over three million books.
In January, Kristen released FREE, the finale to her much-loved Chaos series. Upcoming from Kristen will be THE SLOW BURN, the final book in her Moonlight and Motor Oil series, out April 30, 2019, and QUIET MAN, a Dream Man novella coming 1,001 Dark Nights coming August 13, 2019.
Kristen, born in Gary and raised in Brownsburg, Indiana, was a fourth generation graduate of Purdue University. Since, she has lived in Denver, the West Country of England, and she now resides in Phoenix. She worked as a charity executive for eighteen years prior to beginning her independent publishing career. She now writes full-time.
Although romance is her genre, the prevailing themes running through all of Kristen's novels are friendship, family and a strong sisterhood. To this end, and as a way to thank her readers for their support, Kristen has created the Rock Chick Nation, a series of programs that are designed to give back to her readers and promote a strong female community.
You can learn more about Kristen and the Rock Chick Nation on her website: www.KristenAshley.net
Disclaimer: this book is intended for mature audiences only. It's recurring themes of sexuality, BDSM, domination, and sexual slavery are not appropriate for minors.
Steamy sex, domination, bondage, control, and persistent love lay between the pages of this sizable novel by Kristen Ashley. Despite its thick and intimating size, I read through it in just a few days, totally engaged in the plot.
Sixx and Stellan come from backgrounds as opposite as they come. Sixx was intrigued by Stellan's detached air from the moment she set eyes on him in the upscale BDSM club run by her good friend and mentor, Aryas. Stellan is par excellence when he works with submissives in the club, and Sixx has her own following as one of the club's most sought after dominatrices.
Her biggest problem? Stellan is totally out of her reach, whether he's attracted to someone else, or just seems to not notice her at all.
And then there's her career choice, looming in the background. If she gets involved with anyone, it could end badly for them both.
So, when Stellan challenges Sixx's preconceived notions about herself and him, the stakes are higher than ever. Can they both move beyond the traumas in their pasts to find love stronger than any bondage they've ever explored?
And when Sixx takes on a job that has her exploring another BDSM club, will the danger cost her the best thing she's ever had?
This is my first Kristen Ashley, and it is definitely NOT your momma's Fifty Shades of Gray. Deeply empathetic characters and rich settings set the stage for steamy romance and rough sex of all kinds.
This book is available in Kindle, audio book, paperback, and MP3 CD here.
Forbidden by Destiny
Jenn revisits the Forbidden Love series by Negeen Papehn with book 2, Forbidden by Destiny
Forbidden by Destiny, Negeen Paphen
Adult, Multicultural Romance , 282 Pages
Publisher City Owl Press (February 19, 2019)
Leyla had never known what it felt like to fall in love. Not until her best friend Sara broke Ben's heart.
After the devastating break up, Leyla reluctantly agreed to pick up Sara's things from Ben's home. Leyla thought she was being a good friend, but when she finds Ben completely shattered, her loyalties are tested. He had been her friend too. An afternoon of an innocent lunch and a walk on the beach to cheer him up turns into fireworks when Leyla can't get Ben out of her head.
Pushed to her limits, fighting for a love she's always dreamed of, and against a demon she never knew existed, Leyla must ultimately make a choice. Her decision will come down to loyalty to her best friend, the expectations of her family, or the desires of her wanting heart. Is love worth taking the risk?
Negeen Papehn was born and raised in southern California, where she currently lives with her husband and two rambunctious boys. She wasn't always a writer. A graduate of USC dental school, Negeen spends half of her week with patients and the other half in front of her laptop. In the little time she finds in between, she loves to play with her boys, go wine tasting with her friends, throw parties, and relax with her family.
Negeen Papehn brings back the fantastic cast of her first book, Forbidden by Faith, to continue the story of Ben (the almost-hero of book 1) and Leyla, best friend of Sara, the heroine of book 1, in her second release, Forbidden by Destiny.
After Sara and Ben end their relationship for good, best friend Leyla is tasked with collecting Sara's things from the apartment the couple was moving into. Leyla liked Ben – they were friends while he and Sara were dating, but she's been friends with Sara since they were in diapers. So when Leyla realizes she's attracted to her best friend's ex, and that she's deeply bothered by how Sara ended the relationship, Leyla finds herself in the worst possible situation – she's in love with her best friend's ex.
Ben understands Leyla's predicament, but after two years of experience with Sara's Iranian family, their culture, and their judgment based on his heritage, he's not up for a repeat – and he pushes Leyla to stop hiding their love.
Turns out that doing so creates an avalanche of events that threaten to tear Leyla's world apart, distancing her from friends, family, and ultimately, Ben himself. And just as she's finding her feet again, her world is turned upside down by a single trauma that will alter her life forever.
I enjoyed book 1, and I was just tickled pink to see how much Ms. Papehn has grown as an author in book 2. The writing and plot are tighter. The narrative doesn't ramble at all. The emotional impact of this second book is so much deeper, that I found myself crying on more than one occasion, and I hadn't even gotten to the black moment!
Forbidden by Destiny can be read as a standalone, easily. Any necessary backstory is handled efficiently and doesn't leave the reader lost. With that said, however, reading book 1, Forbidden by Faith, will deepen the emotional impact of Layla and Ben's story. And… Spoiler alert: I am so happy that Ben got his happy ending – he's the kind of guy that mother's hope their daughters (and maybe sons) find to spend their lives with.
A full, easy four-star romance worth sitting down to.
This book is available on Amazon in Kindle format here:
Forbidden by Faith (Book 1 – Sara and Maziar's story)
Forbidden by Time (Book 3 – Bita & Ramtin's story)
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We're a family of readers: Brian, Jenn, and Sam. Each of us has our favorite genres to read, but sometimes, we all read one book (because it was just that good!).
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Mississippi Fats – A Story Of America
The woman in this photo is from Mississippi, which recently was found to be the fattest state in America – and that's some going. Nearly thirty-five per cent of the people in Mississippi are classified as obese and this in a country that is overwhelmingly fat. A report published last week by the Centers for Disease Control estimated that 73 million people, or 34 per cent of the population of the US of A are obese.
Nine of the ten fattest states in America are in the South and it is no accident that they are also the poorest states in the Union. Being poor does not just mean that people are not well educated and therefore ignorant about which food is best for their health. It means they just can't afford to buy decent, healthy food or don't have the opportunity to access cheaper, high-quality produce because they live in places where farmers' markets exist only on TV shows.
The reason why fast food outlets like McDonalds do so well in this country is that they sell bad food cheaply to poor people. A huge proportion of Americans buy and eat their evening meals at places like Kentucky Fried Chicken because it is cheaper than buying good food in supermarkets and cooking at home. And in families where people hold down two or more jobs just to keep going it is also easier and more convenient to go to KFC than to spend the evening in a hot, small kitchen after a hard day's work.
The reason why the food at places like KFC is cheap is not only because it is of poor quality but because the regulatory authorities allow such companies to buy their produce, like chickens, filled with growth-stimulating chemicals that are reared in unhealthy, overcrowded animal factories. That keeps the unit cost low and therefore the price to their poor customers – but it means that people are also all eating those disgusting and harmful chemicals that were fed to the animals.
The regulators, in this case the Food and Drug Administration (FDA,) have, like their counterparts on Wall Street, been encouraged to relax health regulations because that is good for sales and profits. The deregulatory craze which first hit America in the Reagan years and was then absorbed into the political mainstream, Democrats and Republicans, and which has now driven the country to the brink of a devastating economic recession has also had a catastrophic effect of the quality of American food, in turn significantly worsening the health of her people.
The woman in that photo doesn't look that old, albeit seen from behind, but in a few years her joints will collapse as arthritis rages through her body and she will not be able to walk or work. The fact that she uses a cane to get around is evidence that may be happening already. The strain on her heart from carrying all that weight will soon be unbearable, as it will be on all her vital organs and it is likely that she will suffer an early death.
Before that she will probably endure very bad health which will be extremely costly to pay for – those drugs, thanks again to the FDA's relaxed, pro-business attitude to the renewal of drug companies' licences on products, do not come cheap and nor do the disabled carts you see everywhere in America, not least at Tea Party rallies, carrying outraged 'patriots' as they assail Obama's 'socialism' and sing the praises of Sarah Palin!
The health insurance companies, thanks to Obamacare, will raise their premiums more and more each year (in 2011 I pay more for my own single insurance than I did in 2001 for a family of three), increasingly putting health care beyond the reach of more and more Americans. The absence of a public option in Obama's health 'reforms' means there is not even a modicum of socialised medicine to compete with private health insurance. (If Obama had done that he would have provoked the rage of the health lobby and his fundraising for 2012 would have suffered. The lobbyists, in health, banking, oil and so on own politics in this country) As people like this woman retire their health costs will soar, putting pressure on Washington politicians, as is happening right now, to cut back on schemes like Medicare rather than raise taxes on those who are well off and healthy, the people who fund their re-election campaigns.
More and more people will either have to pay more for health care or do without which means that poverty will increase, which means that food quality will continue to be poor and may even deteriorate more, which means that health care will continue to deteriorate. America, or at least the bulk of it, is headed in an accelerating downward spiral towards misery and destruction with politicians like Barack Obama playing the Pied Piper, playing tunes of hope and change to the crowds that gaily follow them but offering none in reality.
One group of people in America will not have to live this nightmare. They are the one per cent who own 24 per cent of the wealth and growing, and whose political representatives in Washington, both Republican and Democrat, are as I write this, making it possible for that 24 per cent share to head ever upwards by cutting back on health care, social security and other public spending while refusing to sanction tax increases.
The story of America can be told in that photo of a fat woman in Mississippi. There are some who say that America deserves the wretched end that is coming. Others who say it cannot come fast enough.
Dennis Potter's Parting Shot At Rupert Murdoch
Posted on July 7, 2011 | 10 comments
As the British media and, slowly but surely, their American counterparts begin dismantling the myth and blowing away the aura that has surrounded Rupert Murdoch for far too long, this is a moment perhaps, to pay tribute to the man who was the first to spot the stink of sewage coming from that direction, who cried the warning but was ignored. I know I have featured the audio from this interview before but here is the video, which is well worth watching. That man was Dennis Potter, the English playwright and here he is speaking about the Dirty Digger in a celebrated TV exchange with Melvyn Bragg. Potter suffered from psoriatic arthritis, a terrible disease, and was a few days away from death from cancer when he gave the interview. Enjoy and remember he was blowing the whistle on Murdoch in 1994, seventeen years ago, since when the Australian media mogul has visited his blight elsewhere in the world, notably here in America courtesy of Fox News.
Update 15.22 EDT – Rupert Murdoch's influence on the course of British politics – buying politicians' favours by putting his media clout at their disposal – has been brilliantly chronicled by Lance Price, whom I knew vaguely when he worked at the BBC in Belfast. Once he moved into doing PR for Tony Blair my estimation of him dipped – until that is I read this piece by him describing the Dirty Digger as the unseen minister at Blair's Cabinet table exercising influence over so many of Blair's key decisions. Hugh Grant, another character who has risen in my judgement over this affair even if he has behaved in unashamed self-interest, wrote these scathing words about Margaret Thatcher's relations with Murdoch. We know current PM David Cameron has also kowtowed to Murdoch because he chose disgraced NOTW editor Andy Coulson as his press person. That means every major prime minister during the year's when Britain was wooed into the world of neo-liberal economics was under the sway of Murdoch and owed him big time for the support his media empire gave them at election time.
Update – 22:17 EDT: No-one involved in the extraordinary News of the World (known as News of the Screws in my youth) scandal – extraordinary because someone in a high place in News International was so dumb as to think they would get away with such a blatant and widespread malpractice carried out by so many people for so long – deserves any sympathy. But spare a thought for Rebekah Wade's predecessor as NotW editor Andy Coulson who clearly is being set up by Murdoch & his despicable crew as the fall guy for the
Murdoch's patsy, Andy Coulson
hacking & police bribery that went on. Bets are that this is possible because the bold Rebekah has the goods on Murdoch's son, James and if the Dirty Digger moves against her, he knows that she can produce the emails, recorded phone calls and so on in sufficiently damning quantity and quality as to bring the House of Murdoch to its knees.
Murdoch et al are probably gambling that Coulson does not have the same sort of quality leverage, so he has become expendable – hence all the disingenuous, faux horror from Murdoch, his son James and the rest of the News International crew that of course they are 'appalled' to learn what was going on, and of course they knew nothing of any of this, there were loose cannons in the newsroom don't you know & wasn't Rebekah tanning herself on the beach in Crete when Milly was hacked and so on?
But it is a gamble. Even if Coulson does not have the sort of evidence Rebekah may have/probably has he would have been a very foolish man indeed if he had not spent the last months reconstructing in painful detail all those incriminating conversations he undoubtedly had with News International's top echelon before, during and after the whole sordid affair broke. So he can do lots of damage one way or the other. That's one reason why this ploy by Murdoch is such a huge gamble.
The other is that Murdoch is also threatening to throw Coulson's erstwhile employer, Tory leader and British PM, David Cameron to the lions. It is a challenge Cameron can hardly duck. His judgement in hiring Coulson has already been severely questioned – even Ed Milliband couldn't help but look good attacking him, for God's sake – but standing idly by as Coulson, and by implication his most recent employer, are destroyed in the courts will be his Waterloo (the one where John Wayne wasn't born). So, he has to fight back. The public opinion tipping point against Murdoch has been passed and it's doubtful if the needle can ever be pushed back. If Cameron fails to see that – the fate of the BSkyB deal will tell this story – then he's a goner. Murdoch has always dealt with pliant, malleable politicians in Britain (see Lance Price's account of Blair, in his first year as PM, traveling half way across the world to pay homage to Murdoch and his lackeys) and also in America. No British prime minister has ever defied Murdoch and one has to doubt whether Cameron has the stuff to be the first. But if he doesn't he will be toast. One of them will fall. As political dramas go, you couldn't make this one up. But for the first time in my life, I'm tempted to root for the Tory.
Update, July 8th, 21:13 EDT – When the British Army's favorite daily, The Daily Telegraph, house journal of establishment British Conservatism (rather like the Wall Street Journal or Morning Joe on MSNBC) , turns against Murdoch as it has done here in this piece written by its Chief Pol Corr, Peter Oborne or in this lead news story then you know Murdoch is totally under water. As one of my old mates in Belfast used to say in other similar situations, 'it couldn't happen to a more deserving fella'.
Update, July 10th, 17:19 EDT
It been almost impossible to switch on a radio or TV programme dealing with the Murdoch hacking scandal without Roy Greenslade popping up to lecture the world about how insidious and destructive Murdoch's media reach has been in Britain. Only this afternoon I switched on NPR's On the Media and there he was again, this time full of breathless excitement about the latest sordid twists and turns in the story. Reading his Guardian blog, it is clear that the former Daily Mirror editor turned journalism professor is savouring ever moment of the Dirty Digger's fall – as, indeed, are we all.
But there is an old rule in journalism, as in life, which says that people who live in glass houses should be pretty careful about where and in whose direction they toss stones. A couple of years ago the Guardian reporter Nick Davies, who has been more responsible than any other British journalist for uncovering the NOTW hacking scandal, published a book called Flat Earth News dedicated to uncovering malpractice and misbehaviour in the British media, not least at the Sunday Times, the flagship of the Murdoch media empire in Britain and Greenslade's former employer.
According to Davies, during Roy Greenslade's tenure as Managing News Editor at the same Sunday Times, the now ubiquitous Murdoch scourge doubled as an pseudonymous correspondent of An Phoblacht-Republican News, the Provisional IRA's once weekly newspaper. According to this report, Greenslade was so angry at bad British reporting of the 1988 SAS shootings in Gibraltar that "(he) was provoked into one particularly bizarre manoeuvre in his efforts to let some light into the story. He believed in the Irish republican cause and occasionally wrote for the Sinn Fein paper An Phoblacht, but discreetly hid his work behind the pseudonym George King." George King was of course meant to be a play on 'King George' (ho!ho! Nice one Roy).
Now, compared to hacking into Milly Dowler's cell phone, hiding behind a false by-line to write for an overtly political newspaper hardly rates, while others might choose to celebrate this rarest of rare examples of a British hack actually taking the other side in the Irish story. But it is still unethical journalistic behaviour – reporters are not supposed to take sides and isn't the fact that Murdoch egregiously, aggressively and unapologetically takes sides all the time, in his case on behalf of the powerful political elites in Britain and America, that makes him both a dangerous and insidious influence?
If Greenslade felt so strongly about the Gibraltar killings and in particular the way his colleagues on the Sunday Times reported the story, there were other, more acceptable, honest and certainly more effective ways to have made his views known – not least by going public with his criticism under his real name. As the Glasgow-based Media Research Group reported in their investigation of the British media coverage of the Gibraltar killings, Murdoch's Sunday Times, whose news coverage Greenslade was partly responsible for, led a despicable pack of British newspapers which distorted and twisted the evidence of eye witnesses like Carmen Proetta whose testimony damned the SAS and the Thatcher government. Few people were better placed to expose all these dirty deeds than Roy Greenslade. But he didn't – at least not in the way he should have.
As I say, this doesn't rate compared to hacking into the mobile phones of teenage murder victims but imagine the impact if Greenslade had publicly critiqued his own newspaper's coverage of the story – and presumably he could have told some tales – particularly since more principled journalists, like Roger Bolton and his Thames TV team were being crucified by the Murdoch media for their great investigative documentary 'Death on the Rock'. But he bottled. Instead Greenslade chose to keep his job at Wapping while salving his conscience anonymously in the columns of AP-RN while no doubt racking up some brownie points with Gerry Adams & Co.
As if that wasn't all bad enough, Greenslade wrote this review of Davies' book in in the Guardian in February 2008 and managed to make no mention at all of his own little excursion outside the realm of journalistic ethics in an otherwise rousing 'three cheers for Nick' piece celebrating the exposure of other peoples' outrageous transgressions.
In some later pieces for the Guardian, the keen-eyed and perhaps cynical reader might wonder if Roy Greenslade ever stopped writing for AP-RN, at least in his own head. Take a look at this indignant 2002 piece that he wrote in the aftermath of the Stormont raid on Sinn Fein's offices (you know, the one that eventually exposed Denis Donaldson as an British spy!) and note the line on 'British securocrats' out to sabotage the peace process because it is such a threat to the union. The piece could have come wholesale from a Martin McGuinness/Gerry Adams speech so full is it of Sinn Fein-speak. Had Roy done his homework and actually talked to some of these so-called 'securocrats', he might have discovered that far from beavering away at its downfall many were so enamoured of the peace process, recognising it as signalling the end of the IRA, that they were bending over backwards to make it work and to ensure the survival of the Adams-McGuinness leadership. But again, he didn't.
Anyway here is the wonderful Dennis Potter:
Niall O'Trump
It is more than difficult to take Niall O'Dowd's given reasons for withdrawing from the Irish presidential race seriously. The Irish Voice editor and founder cites the expense involved, the complexities of the nomination process and the difficulties of mounting a credible campaign in just a few weeks as the factors that led to his decision. But he lists these as if he just found out about them when of course these admittedly real difficulties were always there and were well known.
O'Dowd - Shafted
My own bet is that Sinn Fein shafted him, leaving him with no credible, heavyweight backer or conduit for raising money and the given reasons for his retreat are the fig leaves covering his embarrassment. O'Dowd had taken his case last week to SF leader Gerry Adams but since then it has emerged that the Shinners are likely to throw their weight behind Labour's Michael D Higgins who stands a more than decent chance of winning.
The Shinners are spinning that this is a reward for Higgins' comradely opposition to Section 31 of the Broadcasting Act. Well, maybe. But what about O'Dowd's unceasing labours on behalf of Adams in the States, helping to secure in particular the 1994 Clinton visa for the Provo boss to visit New York, without which internal IRA opposition to the peace process might well have been much greater and Adams himself might now be occupying an anonymous hole in the ground somewhere between South Armagh and Monagahan? Does not that merit some payback?
The fact that O'Dowd expected Adams to recognise his obligations to him is a measure, alas, of his naivete. Adams has his eye on the future, not the past, to the possibility that at some point in the coming years he may have reason to call in the debt soon to be owed by Higgins and Labour, especially if the Galway man ends up in Phoenix
Adams - Shafter
Park. With Irish electoral politics now more unpredictable than ever, a Labour-Sinn Fein coalition (led, incidentally, by two men who continue to deny a militaristic past) is not as fanciful a prospect as it was just a few years ago. And then there is Adams' own hopes that one day, Jean McConville allowing, he too might spend his twilight years in the Aras. Scratch Michael D's back and one day he just might return the favour.
Niall O'Dowd spent many years working with and for Gerry Adams and the Provos but it seems he did not learn much. And it is not as if this was the first time his Shinner friends have shafted him. A few years back The Irish Echo, New York's oldest Irish-American newspaper, was bought over by the unambiguously pro-Sinn Fein Andersonstown News group, dealing a potentially fatal blow to O'Dowd's ailing Irish Voice. Having been screwed once by the Provos, O'Dowd should have known better. After all these are the people who put 'forgotten' in that wonderful old Irish saw: 'Eaten bread is soon forgotten'.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Nadia Kale's paper "The Effects of India's Gender Quota in Local Government on Rates of Reporting Rapes of Women from Scheduled Castes and Tribes" makes an interesting connection between the increase in female representation in local government in India, and the reporting of sexual assault cases by women who belong to scheduled castes and tribes (traditionally backward and underprivileged castes under the caste system). Kale's rationale behind this correlation is particularly interesting; she maintains that the impact of mandated increases in female representation may have been an increase in the rate of reporting of rapes for all women, this has not been the case for women who are particularly marginalized as members of scheduled castes and tribes.
Kale uses distinct methods to assess this startling discovery between what would seem a casual correlation between two otherwise unrelated variables. She uses evidence from studies that looked at factors motivating reporting of crimes against women, though this is hampered by the fact that the studies in question look at Washington D.C. and Kansas. This rests on the assumption that the factors that motivate a woman to report a case of sexual assault in the United States can be extrapolated to marginalized women in India.
That being said, the rest of Kale's paper is extraordinary in its depth and succinctness of analysis of this important phenomenon in the country. Despite significant limitations in the kind of data that is available for violent crimes against women in the country, Kale uses excellent sources that validate her findings statistically. In particular, she finds herself further limited by the lack of detailed reporting of the reporting of sexual assault on women from scheduled castes and tribes in India. It nevertheless makes for a very well written and researched paper that I would highly recommend!


Following the journey of lubricants Morris Lubricants believes it is taking the lead in bringing users closer to engine oil than ever before. PMM finds out why.
Imagine being able to see how oil flows through an engine, protecting critical mechanical components from wear and tear while cleaning and lubricating the entire system. Thanks to Augmented Reality (AR) and Morris Lubricants, there is no need to wonder anymore. The British manufacturer of oils and lubricants has developed a new app, taking you on a journey through the engine and explaining the important parts that are affected by the different oils you use.
The campaign will include a series of adverts that will allow the augmented reality to come to life in the real world, enabling Morris Lubricants to show users over 150 years of experience in the industry.
Your journey starts by looking at a 3D version of an engine and its externals, which you can turn to any angle to look at all the components. You can then view the inside of the engine and see how oil flows through the vehicle, lubricating and protecting.
The internal combustion engine uses small, controlled explosions to generate the power needed to move a vehicle. These explosions, happening hundreds of times a minute, force pistons to move up and down a cylinder deep within. This generates the power needed to turn the vehicle's wheels.
To ensure the best power output, pistons run against the cylinder walls. In addition, many of the parts within the engine are made of metal for robustness. All these parts and many more require lubrication. However, modern oils also include cleaning agents to prevent particle build-up in key areas and keep the engine operating at peak efficiency.
The app also shows you the dirty state of an engine and what happens if you select the wrong oil for your vehicle.
The app immerses viewers in the very heart of the engine and gives two views, an overall external image together with details on turbochargers – fast becoming a standard addition to modern vehicles – as well as information on after-treatments and engine cleanliness. The internal view offers users the chance to follow a Morris Lubricants product as it flows through the system. This gives users the opportunity to understand what is a crucial, yet sometimes overlooked, part of vehicle maintenance.
Until now, the only people who can understand how oil moves through an engine are experts in the field. The new app opens this view to a wider range of people, offering the chance to learn not only the science but how proper and effective care of the engine, together with using the correct quality lubricant, can improve performance, consumption and overall engine life.
Morris Lubricants will also be using the app to present its popular 'Ask Ade' video series to a new audience. The media sees the company's technical guru, Adrian Hill, who is also Morris's Automotive Product Manager, advise on the latest updates and information in the lubricants industry, as well as answer problems that you might be unable to solve.
The app is available for free on Apple's App Store and Google Play, allowing it to be downloaded and used on a range of popular mobile devices.
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I've been doing these circuit workouts at home (instead of walking endless miles on a treadmill and seeing minimal results) for just 15 minutes in the morning, and 15 before bed - and I am seeing great results. It has helped me build lean muscle, and feeling energetic.
And the best part is that I can eat out once and a while without feeling bad!
1. Get in 2-3 times the amount of exercise into any exercise session.
2. Metabolic impact – you will increase your heart rate and maintain a higher heart rate throughout the workout even when most of the workout is strength training exercises.
3. It doesn't take a ton of time. I know that you do not have an hour to spend working out. If you can bang out a 30 minute circuit at high intensity, that is MORE effective than a 60 minute workout at a lesser level of intensity (ie: cardio).
4. Full body workouts – because you are moving so quickly from one exercise to the next you want to use a lot of different muscle groups and alternate the working muscle groups. So you can easily choose exercises that allow you to train the entire body.
5. Variety and fun – yes, I said it. Fun. Circuit training can be fun! For that reason alone I do a ton of circuit training myself.
6. Major Fat Burner. Hard work and high intensity yields a much higher calorie burn and therefore fat burn for the workout.
Repeat x 3 Rounds. Rest :30-:60 between rounds.
Circuit training is an excellent way to improve mobility, strength and stamina. The circuit training comprises of 6 to 10 strength exercises that are completed one exercise after another. Each exercise is performed for a specified number of repetitions or for a set time before moving on to the next exercise. The exercises within each circuit are separated by a short rest period, and each circuit is separated by a longer rest period. The total number of circuits performed during a training session may vary from two to six depending on your training level.


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Alexandria, VA (10/25/12)—ASCD, a global leader in providing programs, products, and services that empower educators to support the success of each learner, has launched a new, free app for iPad bringing valuable professional development content to educators anywhere.
With the new app, "ASCD for iPad," available exclusively on the App Store, educators who purchase ASCD e-books can easily access that content on their iPad. ASCD members can also use the app to access their members-only content such as Educational Leadership, Education Update and Policy Priorities. For ASCD premium online or select online members, the app will automatically sync their ASCD e-books.
Free electronic versions of Educational Leadership, Education Update and Policy Priorities, as well as a free book excerpt are also available just by downloading the app.
The ASCD for iPad App is available for free from the App Store on iPad or at www.itunes.com/appstore. Once downloaded, sign in with your ASCD username and password and your ASCD purchases and benefits automatically appear.
For more information about ASCD's books and newsletters, visit www.ascd.org/publications. To read the current and archived issues of Educational Leadership, visit www.ascd.org/el. For more information about ASCD membership, programs or services, visit www.ascd.org.
Marissa Bialecki, communications coordinator, 1-703-575-5461 or by e-mail.


Please kindly note that The UK House of Commons will make a indicative vote for other Brexit options on Wednesday, 27 March 2019 server time around 19:30 which may lead to extreme market volatility, thin market liquidity, abnormal spreads and price gaps in currency pairs involving GBP and EUR. In preparation for this, FxCitizen will be taking the following precautionary actions to protect our clients and Company from the anticipated market turbulence during the elections.
1) MARGIN requirements on all currency pairs containing GBP and EUR may increase by 300%, effective from 27 March 2019, server time 19:00 until the volatility of the market is stabilized. This will affect both new and existing positions. Please ensure your account has sufficient margin to sustain your posistions.


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BlogBuilding SecurityEntrance ControlProduct FeaturesTechnology TrendsTurnstiles
What Makes Turnstiles Smart?
By Shana McCoy	March 12, 2019 May 21st, 2019 No Comments
Turnstiles are often a component of any comprehensive physical security strategy. Technology has played an integral part in advancing the turnstile from its humble beginnings in the early 20th century into a multi-function security component, monitoring populations, ensuring proper authorization of those who enter and exit the facility, and enhancing life safety practices.
To know where we're going with the future of physical security, it helps to also understand where we've been in terms of turnstile evolution.
The Early Days of Turnstiles
The original purpose behind the creation of turnstiles can be traced back to the agriculture industry where the need existed to allow people to pass from field to field while also keeping livestock penned in. Fast forward to more modern times, Clarence Saunders, the founder of Piggly Wiggly supermarkets, installed turnstiles for the first time to control the masses of crowds who were eager to visit the world's first supermarket.
From that point forward, turnstiles quickly gained popularity as a method to limit and control entry and exit of a variety of different facilities like office lobbies, stadiums, amusement parks, airports, residences, and casinos. The older tripod-style revolving turnstile was used extensively in subways and sports stadiums but are now being gradually phased out because they have no sensors or safety features of any kind, and they proved to be very dangerous for children.
Using Turnstiles as Advanced Entrance Control
While the underlying purpose for turnstile functionality is crowd control, the advancement in technology has allowed their use to significantly expand and cover a greater spectrum of security needs. Turnstiles have become much safer and more intelligent, thanks in part to the inclusion of sensor technology and microprocessor arrays for highly accurate analysis of what is happening in the lane. The ability to embed other intelligence tools within them such as access cards, biometric scanners, and facial recognition software extends their functionality even further for security applications.
But what does this embedded intelligence mean for an entrance control strategy? Entrance control policies from the most basic to the highly sophisticated are intended to do one thing: allow the right people access while effectively stopping those who don't have access authority. Embedded intelligence allows facilities to take an all-encompassing approach to entrance control rather than settling for one or two key objectives. Let's explore some of the intelligent technology offerings that truly make a turnstile "smart":
Infrared Matrix
Through the use of infrared sensors that crisscross the lanes, turnstiles can now detect when anyone, or a group of beams, is broken. Originally, this beam-break detection was the only information that the lane control microprocessor had to work with to determine if something was passing through the lane and in what direction. Older technology systems often couldn't understand exactly what was happening in the lane, resulting in barriers closing on pushed or pulled bags, carts, or baby strollers. They could also only handle one authorized user passing through the lane at a time, so others would have to wait until the person before them has completely passed through.
It's interesting to note that some of these older beam-break technology turnstiles are still on the market today, although some of their outer body styles have been changed to conceal this dated technology. These are easily identified in their own specification sheets with safety warnings about the use of their turnstiles by children, or very low user throughput volumes, often less than 30 persons per minute.
Smart turnstiles, such as Fastlane® turnstiles by Smarter Security have up to nine microprocessors in every lane that work together in a neural network configuration to dramatically improve processing power. Each of these individual microprocessors make thousands of calculations per second, but the multiplier effect achieved by having them work together enables them to accurately model every object in the lane. For example, pushed or pulled bags are seen as part of the authorized user, and if a second authorized user steps into the lane they are modeled separately without generating any false alarms or having barriers close on them. This level of intelligence also adds to the effectiveness of tailgate detection in the lane, with less than ¼" accuracy being easily achievable.
Secure entry points have to consider emergency situations where people on the secure side of the turnstiles have to get out. In the case of a fire alarm, every modern turnstile has to open in the exit direction to allow people to leave. They should never generate alarms in these circumstances and they should never return to normal operation until after the fire alarm has been turned off.
But there is another situation that some manufacturers fail to account for: emergency egress in a non-fire emergency. For example, in the case of an active shooter, there may not be a fire alarm activated but people on the secure side of the barriers should be able to escape without having to present a valid identity card to the turnstile for it to open. Smarter Security turnstiles have the intelligence to release their locking brakes and allow users to push through the barriers with fingertip pressure as soon as they step into the lane on the secure side. Alarms will sound as they push through the barriers, but safety is ensured with the ability to exit. This capability is becoming increasingly mandatory in building and fire codes throughout the country.
Biometric security technology is continuing to evolve but many facilities are looking to enhance the user experience without them having to physically touch anything or produce credentials. Fastlane turnstile and Door Detective products can integrate with a wide range of biometric products including the most advanced touchless systems from multiple vendors. Facial recognition, fingerprint, iris, vascular, and dual biometric solutions have all been integrated with these products, and many of them are completely touchless.
A turnstile can only be as effective as the settings it enforces. With IP-enabled turnstiles, critical settings can be adjusted in the field rather than requiring settings to be updated physically on the device. The ability to update settings in real-time results in maximum uptime and improved performance to ensure continued robust security policies.
IP communications within a set of turnstiles, whether from a dedicated remote control device, from a web browser, or using available CGI/XML command sequences, can let security teams remotely close certain exits after hours, or switch from card-in/free-exit during working hours to card-in/card-out in the evening for increased security when there is less staff on hand to monitor people's activity.
Begin Your Smarter Security Strategy Today
Whether you're looking to install new turnstiles or upgrade your existing products, ensuring that you're meeting the security needs of your facility is a top priority. Contact a Smarter Security sales manager today or call +1 (512) 328-7277, extension 1233 to schedule a call and assess your entrance control needs


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BBC Home > BBC News > Asia-Pacific
US praises China's space progress
4 November 09 09:24 GMT
China has made dramatic improvements in its military capabilities in space, according to a senior US general.
General Kevin Chilton, commander of US Strategic Command, also said the US would like more information about China's intentions.
The comments come shortly after China's air force commander, Xu Qiliang, said military competition in space was a "historical inevitability".
The two countries have recently been looking to improve military ties.
Speaking to reporters, Gen Chilton said Beijing had made amazing progress in its space programme over recent years.
But he added: "Where they're heading... is one of those things that a lot of people would like to understand better."
Both countries have tried to improve military relations that were recently characterised as "on-again, off-again" by US Defence Secretary Robert Gates.
Last week Gen Chilton hosted a visit to US Strategic Command by Chinese General Xu Caihou, vice-chairman of China's Central Military Commission, the country's military decision-making body.
But while the trip was an effort to improve military ties, it is clear the two sides are also expanding their areas of competition into space.
In 2007 China surprised the world by shooting down one of its own defunct weather satellites.
And earlier this week Gen Xu Qiliang said competition in this area would continue.
"Military competition has shifted towards space. Such a shift is a major trend now, and such expansion is a historical inevitability," he told state-run media.
"To some extent, if you control space you can also control the land and the sea, and you will be in an advantageous position."
Related to this story:
China has high naval ambitions (23 Apr 09 | Asia-Pacific )
China rejects US military fears (18 Sep 09 | Asia-Pacific )
China: Military (02 Oct 09 | Asia-Pacific )
Special report: CHANGING CHINA
News in Spanish
BBC © 2012


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Laramie Movie Scope: Scoop
Very light and slight Woody Allen comedy
November 27, 2006 -- I wasn't expecting much when I went to see Woody Allen's latest film, "Scoop" at the Wyo Theatre last night, and it was, indeed, a very slight film, as I expected from the reviews. What was surprising, however, was how sloppily it had been put together and how many holes there were in the story. Is Woody Allen, one of America's best-ever writer-directors, losing his gift? Many people hailed last year's film "Match Point" as a major comeback for Allen. I wasn't convinced of that, and this film is a further indication that Allen's once stellar gifts are in decline.
In "Scoop," Woody re-teams with his "Match Point" star, Scarlett Johansson, who plays Sondra Pransky, a journalism student who has a habit of having sex with the people she's supposed to be interviewing. While participating in a magic trick conducted by Sid Waterman (Woody Allen), she has a vision of a departed journalist, Joe Strombel (played by Ian McShane of "Agent Cody Banks"). While crossing the River Styx with the Grim Reaper, Strombel gets a tip on a big story from a murder victim. He swims back to the mortal shores to try to break the story with the aide of Miss Pransky. When Sid sees the same ghost, he and Sondra become unlikely partners in a dangerous game of investigative reporting.
The suspect in this notorious "Tarot Card Murder" case is an English lord, Peter Lyman (Hugh Jackman of "The Prestige"). As usual, Sondra ends up in bed with the man she is supposed to be investigating. She doesn't think the handsome and charming Lyman could be the murderer, but Joe Strombel, who repeatedly escapes the clutches of the Grim Reaper, remains convinced of Lyman's guilt and helps dig up new clues. Eventually, Strombel convinces the reluctant Sid Waterman to continue his investigation. The investigation takes some tricky turns and eventually becomes quite dangerous for both Sondra and Sid.
One of the big problems with the script is that Sid doesn't have nearly enough motivation to even begin a murder investigation, let alone pursue it with such tireless passion. Sondra's motivation, too, is a problem. There are also some lapses on the part of Peter Lyman, as well, when he successfully hides one clue, but leaves another, even more damning clue in the same exact spot for no earthly reason. While there is at least one surprising plot development, and some very good jokes in the film, mostly in the way of Woody Allen one-liners, the overall drama, suspense and comedy in the film are surprisingly flat. It is not a particularly funny or engaging film. This is one of the very least of Allen's many cinematic efforts. The acting, overall, is passable. There are also some nice location shots (in England). You know when you are in trouble, however, when the most interesting character in the film is a dead guy who is only on screen for about five minutes. This film rates a C.
Click here for links to places to buy or rent this movie in video and/or DVD format, or to buy the soundtrack, posters, books, even used videos, games, electronics, theater tickets and lots of other stuff. I suggest you shop at least two of these places before buying anything. Prices seem to vary continuously. For more information on this film, click on this link to The Internet Movie Database. Type in the name of the movie in the search box and press enter. You will be able to find background information on the film, the actors, and links to much more information.
Robert Roten can be reached via e-mail at .


There are several bike racks directly outside CCA on Sauchiehall Street. For more information about cycling in the city, please see Strathclyde Cycle Campaign.
There is a bus stop directly outside CCA where First Bus services 3, 4/4A, 18 and 19, amongst others, stop (coming from the west end of the city). Buses from the city centre and south side (First Bus services 3, 4/4A, 18 and 19) stop on Bath Street, just before the King's Theatre - a three minute journey with two level crossings from CCA. The 3 and 4/4A also stop at Hope Street by Glasgow Central train station before continuing to Bath Street.
The nearest train station is Charing Cross, which is about five minutes journey from CCA. The closest Underground station is Cowcaddens, which is around five-ten minutes journey from CCA.
There is limited on-street metered parking on Sauchiehall Street and surrounding area. There are two blue-badge parking spaces available on Pitt Street at the junction with Sauchiehall Street, which are in view of CCA. The nearest multi-story car park is City Parking at Charing Cross. This car park is ticketed, paid parking.
All vehicles used by Glasgow Taxis are wheelchair accessible, please call 0141 429 7070 to book.
For further access and travel information, please consult our Access Statement.
If you are travelling from further afield and need a place to stay, please see this list of nearby hotels as compiled by TripAdvisor.
For further information on Glasgow's attractions and things to do, see People Make Glasgow. Visit Scotland have also produced this list of free things to do in and around Glasgow as well as their Accessible Glasgow Itineraries, featuring plans for single and multiple days-out.