Lisa Ricard Claro's Blog

Tick-tock, tick-tock! There’s still time to enter the Finders Keepers giveaway––a brand new purse stuffed with goodies—but the time is running out! Only a few more days, so be sure to sign up if you haven’t already:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Between the release of Finders Keepers and it’s premise and the above-mentioned giveaway, my focus has understandably been on handbags. If you’ve read my latest posts, then you also know that I love purses almost as much as I love shoes, although lately my adoration of footwear is limited to flip-flops, a side effect of living ten minutes from the beach.

But I digress. The point is, I’m thinking a lot about purses and how the contents of my purse has changed over the years to accommodate my circumstances.

My first purse was white patent leather to match my Easter shoes. I was maybe five or six, and Gramma helpfully stuffed it with a dollar bill for the church collection, tissues in case I had to sneeze, and enough of my chocolate bunny to keep me quiet and happy once the sermonizing started. (God bless Gramma. She knew me well.)

As a teenager, my purse held lip gloss, mascara, gum, tampons, a comb, and a small wallet containing my meager allowance—what was left of it after a trip to the mall—along with change for the pay phone. I also carried tissues, a toothbrush and toothpaste, pens, and a notebook, because I fancied myself a poet and jotted masterpieces at every opportunity.

After I married and had kids, the purse grew to accommodate more and different stuff: enough makeup products to make Merle Norman envious, the ever present tampons, necessities of motherhood to include pacifiers, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels, McDonald’s Happy Meal toys, wet wipes, a first aid kit, Teddy Grahams and Goldfish crackers for little fingers, and dark chocolate and peanut M&Ms for Mommy because . . . well, just because. Don’t get judgy.

The kids grew up as fast as my mom warned me they would, and my purse scaled down some, though it still had to be big enough to hold all the stuff the hubster didn’t have room to carry in his pockets. For years I was his personal assistant, carrier of wallets, sunglasses, and other stuff that was not my own. I mostly didn’t mind because while I’d cut down on a lot of the items I carried, I still had plenty of room to toss in other stuff. My purse was like Mary Poppins’s bag—a lamppost could fit in there if I slid things around just right.

And then . . . something happened. Somewhere deep down I found that I no longer needed a purse with deep pockets. I discovered the joy of a small cross-body bag and the realization that the only person in the whole wide world who gave a flip if my makeup looked good was me, which led me to little or no makeup at all. Boy, did that ever clear up some space.

A few blog posts ago I showed you what I carry in my purse now. (See it HERE.) The items have certainly changed over time, as has the size of my handbag, and it leads me to wonder how the contents will morph yet again as life moves on. If I am one day blessed with grandchildren, will my purse again become a repository for Teddy Grahams and Hot Wheels?

One thing I do know. I’m not giving up my pens or my measuring tape. And I think I should toss in some dark chocolate, too, maybe some emergency peanut M&Ms.

I think Gramma would approve.

How has your purse and its contents changed over the years? What do you carry today that you didn’t ten years ago? How do you expect it to change in the future?

Thanks for hanging out with me. Remember to sign up for the giveaway if you haven’t done it yet, and good luck!

See you next week.

FINDERS KEEPERS released this past Tuesday to rave reviews, and to celebrate we’re doing a big giveaway. Enter for your chance to win a purse filled with prizes:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

There are some way cool prizes in the purse, and I’d love it if one of you were to win. Please share this post with your friends too!

Island of Unfit Purses . . .

Since we’re on the topic of purses, I want to ask about YOUR favorite purse. Is it a purse you love and still use, or is it a long-ago handbag that had to be retired? And when you have a purse you love, is it difficult to throw it out after it becomes unusable?

Last week I talked about my beloved Stone Mountain cross-body bag that I was forced to retire. That purse gave its all, buttercup. I should toss it, but it feels kinda like . . .

It’s ridiculous, but I keep purses for a long time, even after I know I’ll never use them again. Here’s one of my faves from way back. My kids always called it my “hippie purse”. This baby is big enough to carry a dead body, not that I ever gave that a go. It’s been on the shelf for a long while now. I’m hoping I’ll awaken one morning to discover elves repaired it—and the others—while I was sleeping. So far . . . nope.

At last count, I have six purses that will never again see the light of day: two black, one white & black, one red, one clutch, and the above corpse-size carrier—which, when I say it that way, does rather make the notion of tossing it just a little bit easier.

Now back to my original request: Please leave a comment about your favorite purse. Why is it your favorite? And will you (or did you) have a hard time throwing it away? Or is your closet the Island of Unfit Purses . . . like mine?

Remember to enter the giveaway before you leave! I hope you win!

See you soon. And thanks for reading!

Romance is good for your heart! To purchase your copy of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe, Love to Win, or The Write Man click the book cover on this blog’s sidebar. Autographed copies are available for purchase on my HOME page. The audio versions of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe, and Love to Win are available HERE now!

Coming September 10th!

Remember Let’s Make a Deal, the old television game show hosted by Monty Hall? Sometimes Monty would offer cash to the first woman to produce a specific item from her purse. For instance, he might offer $10 for every pen, or lipstick, or paper clip. Sometimes he’d specify an unlikely item, such as a screwdriver or pincushion—and you’d be amazed at how often someone jumped up waving what he’d asked for. It’s often funny what we carry in our purses, isn’t it? What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever found in your purse?

That question is the premise of the FINDERS KEEPERS boxset wherein eight authors, including yours truly, were tasked with writing stories based on one unexpected thing the heroine finds in her purse. The “found” items are fun and diverse—and I promise you many hours of happy reading with this boxset.

In my novel, KILLER LOVE, the heroine, Carly, finds a stray kitten in her bag at the park. Here’s the summary:

Carly Brenner is a recovering alcoholic fighting to keep her life on track after a divorce left her financially devastated. New to the Gulf Coast island of Kiss Key, she works three jobs to make ends meet and struggles with “leaping before she looks”, a habit that gets her into continuous trouble—especially as it pertains to the handsome man who rescues her from a “killer critter” hiding in her tote at the park.

Nolan Maddux is a dedicated veterinarian who has fallen for his share of interesting and beautiful wide-eyed creatures, but they’re usually covered in fur. He’s not prepared for Carly’s striking baby blues, and his attraction is undeniable even after a misconception on her part brings her claws out. But after removing a harmless kitten—which she incongruously names Killer—from her tote and taking the brunt of her misplaced sass, his fuse is lit.

Following a series of mishaps, misunderstandings, and false starts, Carly and Nolan’s romance blooms and they arrive at what they think is solid ground. But Nolan’s former fiancée and Carly’s ex-husband arrive on Kiss Key, bringing with them serious trouble including arson and an assault on Carly delivered with such cunning that she believes herself guilty of something unforgivable.

It will take Nolan’s unshakable faith in Carly, even when she has no faith left in herself, to uncover the truth and use it to find justice—for herself, for him, and the precious love they feared was lost forever.

For the lowdown on ALL the authors and stories in this boxset, click to this link from my last blog post: https://www.lisaricardclaro.com/new-release/

For today’s blog I thought it would be fun to empty my purse, “baring it all”, as it were. You’ll have to trust me on this, but I haven’t deliberately put items in my purse for this post, nor have I removed any, but in honor of the Naked Truth I’ll tell you everything I find in this purse-to-purse transition. I’m a little nervous about this, not gonna lie. Because what ridiculous thing is buried in there?!

The above is my favorite purse, a Stone Mountain cross-body bag, small and easy to carry while shopping. I’ve used it for two years, and it’s finally torn up on the inside, so I’m replacing it with this Relic, found at a secondhand store for only $10, and at that price I couldn’t pass it up. I LOVE the pineapples. Super cute, yes?

Now I’m transferring the stuff from my Stone Mountain bag into the Relic bag, and I haven’t cleaned it out in a while, so who knows? But we’re about to find out what’s in there. . . ready? Here goes:

Wallet, 2 Panera cards, 2 Tide pens, a paper clip, a large safety pin, business cards, Post-it pad, mermaid note cards, 7 pens, 2 lipsticks, 1 mascara, flushable moist towelettes, 1 moist towelette packet, 2 retractable measuring tapes (2??), loose change, old receipts, doctor appointment cards, 2 hair clips, a Beall’s card, 2 ibuprofen containers (both almost empty *sigh*), seashells (naturally), tissues, and a plastic army man (long story). And, according to the photo below, 1 adorable cat. (Luna snuck in, settling down after the allure of so many small items drew her attention. You can tell by the look on her face she’s deciding what to bat off the bed first.)

How did all this stuff fit into my little purse?

So, I’m a bit relieved not to have found too many wacky things though the multiples of common items is a tad disturbing. What do you suppose a psychiatrist would say about my apparent hoarding tendencies? As to the 7 pens, well . . . I can’t help it. I LOVE pens. And really, one can never have too many.

Hello, buttercup! I’m excited to share the upcoming release of my latest novel, KILLER LOVE, included in the FINDERS KEEPERS: THE PURSE boxset. This anthology features eight authors, eight books, and all the feels!

Curl up with eight romances where each heroine discovers a surprise in her purse that sends her on a wild ride to her happily-ever-after! https://amzn.to/31wzeU7

FINDERS KEEPERS releases on September 10th in eBook format. You can pre-order now—8 books!—for only $0.99. That’s a deal!

I’m thrilled to be included with this group of talented authors. Here’s a first-time look at KILLER LOVE, my contribution to this fun project:

When the past and present collide, love can be a real killer.

Carly Brenner is a recovering alcoholic fighting to keep her life on track after a divorce left her financially devastated. New to the Gulf Coast island of Kiss Key, she works three jobs to make ends meet and struggles with “leaping before she looks”, a habit that gets her into continuous trouble—especially as it pertains to the handsome man who rescues her from a “killer critter” hiding in her tote at the park.

Nolan Maddux is a dedicated veterinarian who has fallen for his share of interesting and beautiful wide-eyed creatures, but they’re usually covered in fur. He’s not prepared for Carly’s striking baby blues, and his attraction is undeniable even after a misconception on her part brings her claws out. But after removing a harmless kitten—which she incongruously names Killer—from her tote and taking the brunt of her misplaced sass, his fuse is lit.

Following a series of mishaps, misunderstandings, and false starts, Carly and Nolan’s romance blooms and they arrive at what they think is solid ground. But Nolan’s former fiancée and Carly’s ex-husband arrive on Kiss Key, bringing with them serious trouble including arson and an assault on Carly delivered with such cunning that she believes herself guilty of something unforgivable.

It will take Nolan’s unshakable faith in Carly, even when she has no faith left in herself, to uncover the truth and use it to find justice—for herself, for him, and the precious love they feared was lost forever.

So that’s the scoop on KILLER LOVE! And here’s an introduction to the other authors whose books you’ll get to curl up with:

JEN TALTY: Welcome to my World! I’m a USA Today Bestseller of Romantic Suspense, Contemporary Romance, and Paranormal Romance.

I first started writing while carting my kids to one hockey rink after the other, averaging 170 games per year between 3 kids in 2 countries and 5 states. My first book, IN TWO WEEKS was originally published in 2007. In 2010 I helped form a publishing company (Cool Gus Publishing) with NY Times Bestselling Author Bob Mayer where I ran the technical side of the business through 2016.

I’m currently enjoying the next phase of my life…the empty NESTER! My husband and I spend our winters in Jupiter, Florida and our summers in Rochester, NY. We have three amazing children who have all gone off to carve out their places in the world, while I continue to craft stories that I hope will make you readers feel good and put a smile on your face.

Jen’s book is WINE WEDNESDAY: What started as a reunion ends in a deadly twist and an unexpected finish.

CASEY HAGEN: USA Today Bestselling author Casey Hagen pens her snarky, passionate stories from the salty air of Kennebunk, Maine. She’s a born and raised Vermont native, a New England girl to the core, with Ben & Jerry’s in her heart and real Vermont maple syrup pumping through her veins.

She’s the proud mother of three girls and a new, first-time grandma with an insatiable addiction to Fall Out Boy, and a new, rather concerning obsession with tattoos and piercings. Can you say “cool grandma?”

The inked and pierced grandma spends her time tucked away in her office, coated in cat hair, alternating between tearing her hair out trying to find the perfect words and being one step ahead of her three scheming fur babies she is positive are plotting her demise with every swirl around her ankles at the top of her office stairs.

She loves writing stories about real people, with complicated histories, relatable everyday problems, and giving them the hard-won happily-ever-afters they deserve.

And she thanks every last one of you who picks up one of her stories.

Casey is done talking about herself in the third person.

*Casey out*

Casey’s book is THE MISS ADVENTURES OF MABEL LEE: Mama always warned her that her sense of adventure would only lead to trouble. Tall. Dark. Delicious. Trouble.

NICOLE S. PATRICK: Nicole S. Patrick has always loved to read, and in her teenage years, she “borrowed” her mom’s books to sneak away and become lost in the world of romance. After more than ten years in the corporate world of tech recruiting and HR management, she decided to stay home and raise children. But with so many romantic stories and characters floating around in her head, when the kids napped, she was compelled to put those words on a page and pursue this crazy dream of becoming published. Nicole writes romantic suspense and her heroes are those alpha males in uniform. She lives in New Jersey with her real-life hero, her husband, and her two sons.

Nicole’s book is FLUTTER: He’d cracked the wall around her heart.

STACEY WILK: Stacey Wilk wrote her first novel in middle school to quiet the characters in her head. It was that or let them out to eat the cannolis and she wasn’t sharing her grandfather’s Italian pastries.

Many years later her life took an adventurous turn when she gave birth to two different kinds of characters. She often sits in awe of their abilities to make objects fly, it snow on command, and remain dirty after contact with water. She does share the cannolis with them for fear of losing her fingers.

Because of the extraordinary characters now in her home instead of in her head, including a king who surfaces after dark and for coffee, she writes novels about family: those that we are born to and those that we pick up along the way. You can find her message in her middle-grade fantasy novels as well as her women’s fiction novels. Family are those that love you when you need them.

When she’s not creating stories in make-believe places, she can be found hanging with the cast members of her house, or teaching others how to make make-believe worlds of their own.

Stacy’s book is NO MORE DARKNESS: When a chance encounter warms the heart and lights the way home.

RAVYN SALVADOR: Rayvn Salvador is a lifelong bibliophile who left her eighteen-year IT career to live her dream: getting paid to read and write. She lives in Florida with her hellion kitten and her incredibly supportive beau, dreaming about the Midwest’s changing leaves as she perfects her yoga poses on the beach.

Rayvn’s book is YOUR MOVE: Their past is the key to everything, but the move to unlock the future has yet to be made.

ROBIN STONE: Robin started writing stories when she was five years old. She wrote essays, articles, and over a million words of nonfiction before turning to fiction in 2011. She watched erotic romance authors having way too much fun, and after writing her first erotic romance, she was hooked.

She writes erotic romances starring handyman heroes. Robin’s imagination is filled with delivery men, landscapers, and carpenters. Her sex-positive books (M/F, M/M, and M/M/F) are emotional stories that keep readers coming back for more.

Robin lives near Boston and likes reading, travel, and eating good chocolate. She loves hearing from her readers.

Robin’s book is THE LETTER: He lost his true love. Will he ever find another?

JUDY KENTRUS: I was born and raised in NJ and moved to PA ten years ago. I’m a romantic at heart, having married my high school sweetheart and we raised a wonderful son and daughter. My books are fun, romantic suspense that will make you laugh, cry and sigh from their HEA’s.

Judy’s book is UNCHARTED LOVE: Their journey to love is battered by secrets from their pasts.

Thanks for being here! I appreciate you reading. Remember to pre-order FINDERS KEEPERS: THE PURSE while it’s still only $0.99!

So now you know what I’ve been doing with my summer. What have you been up to? Please leave a comment. You know I’ll comment back!

Romance is good for your heart! To purchase your copy of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe, Love to Win, or The Write Man click the book cover on this blog’s sidebar. Autographed copies are available for purchase on my HOME page. The audio versions of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe, and Love to Win are available HERE now!

Hello, blog friends! This is my last post for a few months. I’m taking a blog break until summer’s end but will post here and there to keep you abreast of news regarding the upcoming boxed set in which my novella will be included. Until then, I hope you enjoy a safe and happy summertime!

See you in the fall!

Romance is good for your heart! To purchase your copy of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe,Love to Win, or The Write Man click the book cover on this blog’s sidebar. Autographed copies are available for purchase on my HOME page. The audio versions of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe, and Love to Win are available HERE now!

According to Reader’s Digest, research into the science of annoyance—who knew this qualifies as a science?—shows that being peeved is “a natural expression of survival”. The article goes on to discuss five valid, annoyance-worthy pet peeves and provides the science to back up their statements in this article titled Totally Justified Pet Peeves. None of us is likely to argue with any of these:

Fingernails screeching on a chalkboard
People chewing with their mouths open
People carrying on lengthy cell phone

conversations in public
Incessant nagging without the offer of a

solution
Being cut off in traffic

I won’t go into the details of the article as there is little point in my paraphrasing what you are able to read for yourself. Instead, I’d like to add my own list of pet peeves to those above. Here are my own top five totally righteous pet peeves. See if you agree:

Discovering, at the worst possible moment, that the public restroom is out of toilet paper (double peeved if the restroom is icky)
Children running wild in public places (especially restaurants) while their parents ignore them (peeved at the parents, not the children)
Calling for information only to spend thirty minutes tapping through a menu (annoying enough) only to be disconnected two seconds after speaking to a real live person, after which the only remedy is to begin the hateful process anew back at the start of the *&$^%&* menu (every government agency)
Settling down to watch my favorite DVR’d show only to discover some idiotic sports program ran long and my show stopped recording at the 2/3 mark
No wine to be found anywhere in the house, usually after spending all that time going through the *&$^%&* phone menu

If pressed, I could list many more, but when I started this I promised myself I’d use only the first five that popped into my head as these would likely be the ones that bother me the most. I challenge you to do the same. What are your pet peeves? Don’t think about it, just jot down the first ones that come to mind, and please leave your answer in the comments. Inquiring minds want to know!

And now I’m off to watch my DVR’d show. I deserve to relax after spending so much time pressing menu numbers. But it’s been one of those days, buttercup, and I think we all know how this is going to end . . .

Never fear! Today, I’m prepared!

Thanks for being here. I hope you’ve had a wonderful week so far. See you next Wednesday!

Romance is good for your heart! To purchase your copy of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe,Love to Win, or The Write Man click the book cover on this blog’s sidebar. Autographed copies are available for purchase on my HOME page. The audio versions of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe, and Love to Win are available HERE now!

Image courtesy of pixabay.com

Happy Wednesday! I hope your week is going well. Mine has been productive, something I have to admit isn’t always so.

It’s tough to focus with the beach only ten minutes away. Also, when the hubster pops into my office asking if I’d like to run errands with him, I usually drop everything, slide into my flip-flops, and follow him out the door. Running errands doesn’t sound like much fun to most, but for us it’s also called “gallivanting” which, aside from the fun we have just being together, often includes—depending on the time of day—either a Chick-fil-A sandwich or a great cup of coffee from our favorite baristas at Black Gold Coffee Roasters, a local coffee shop.

This week, so far, hasn’t included any of that. I’ve been dedicated to the novella I’m working on and promised the characters I’d stay focused. They’re ready for their romance to ramp up, so I’ve got to keep my writing cap on even when the beach or the hubster come calling. But the weekend is approaching, and I smell a café Americano in my near future.

Please excuse the lack of a real post this week. I’ve been in my writing cave pounding out words on a novella slated for August publication in a boxed set with a slew of other writers. It has been stop and go with this one for reasons I can’t figure out, but the words began flowing today after a big “ah-ha!” moment, and I was happy the dam broke. I wrote most of the morning, stopped around noon and took a 2.5 mile walk, then sat at the keyboard to write some more. Somewhere toward the end of my daily word count I glanced at the calendar.

I was so productive today, too, and felt pretty darn good about myself (until that moment of brutal revelation).

Anyway, I thought I should offer something special to make it up to you. So . . . I’ve given you Batman and Robin, a fluffy white kitten, and a cat riding a unicorn. I hope that’s enough to bring you back next week.

But seriously . . . a cat. Riding a unicorn.

Today was a perfect example of why so many people vacation here on Florida’s Gulf coast and why scads of snowbirds flock to the region every winter in avoidance of Northern climes. The temperature was 85 degrees at two p.m., sunshiny with scattered cumulus clouds and a balmy breeze whispering through the palms and Spanish moss. The humidity was moderate, making it perfect for my afternoon power walk, a two-and-a-half mile loop that never fails to delight with new blooming surprises and unexpected critters sharing the route.

I prefer to walk at midday because it feels good to move after sitting at the computer all morning. As we swing into the summertime months I’ll have to shift to earlier hours. The temperature might still be 85, but come mid-July the humidity will be mighty. Not great for walking at high noon, but perfect for a beach day.

Venice Beach, FL

To be fair, I consider every day a perfect beach day. To wit, this past Sunday was spent at the beach with the family celebrating the hubster’s birthday. We were missing a few kids—two live out of state, one had to work—but had a great time in spite of missing those we wished could be there. The water was chilly but not cold and great for splashing in, and a hunt for sharks’ teeth was successful several times over. A short 10-15 minute walk up the shoreline brought us to the doggy beach where off-leash fur babies are free to run.

Photo courtesy of pixabay.com

They play with their human companions and with each other, chasing, rolling in the sand, and retrieving balls and other toys from the surf. The saltwater doesn’t bother these guys; even small dogs are game to dive in. We saw a Husky, two Dobermans, a Golden Retriever, several Labs, a Great Dane, an Australian Shepherd, Terriers, Dachshunds, Chihuahuas, an English Bulldog, and countless mixed breeds. There was no trouble among them. I asked the human belonging to the Golden Retriever if she was ever worried he’d run off and she said, “Why would he? This is his favorite place in the whole world. Just look at him!” She was right. He was one happy pooch. And he wasn’t the only one. All the canines were excited, happy, and as tickled to be spending a day at the beach as I was. After two years here I still pinch myself at the notion that I can come to the beach whenever I want. It never gets old.

We’ve brought our dogs to the doggy beach only a couple of times. I regret not living here when they were young enough to fully enjoy it. They’re almost thirteen now, and having so many younger dogs running and jumping makes them nervous. But we did bring them for the sunset once in the middle of the week when there were fewer dogs than on a weekend, and they had a great time. We’ll definitely do it again.

The hubster with Penny and Rigby.

The beach is where I come to refresh my body, mind, and spirit. No matter my troubles or disposition, the moment my bare feet touch the sand and the scent of saltwater swirls through my senses I am renewed. This is my sacred soul spot. What’s yours?

Thanks for reading. I’ll see you next week!

Romance is good for your heart! To purchase your copy of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe,Love to Win, or The Write Man click the book cover on this blog’s sidebar. Autographed copies are available for purchase on my HOME page. The audio versions of Love Built to Last, Love to Believe, and Love to Win are available HERE now!