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Sunday, September 20, 2015

#CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--GUEST AUTHOR CLAUDIA LEFEVE

My inexpensive Brother sewing machine is a champ.
There is nothing it can’t do!
Claudia Lefeve was born and raised so far down the Texas Gulf Coast she has to pull out a map to show people it's nowhere near Houston. Now living in Northern Virginia, she’s taking a hiatus from a civilian career in law enforcement to write full-time. Learn more about Claudia and her books at her website. 

One of the best things about being a writer full-time (and a part-time professor,) is getting to wear whatever I want. Granted, most of the time I live in my pajamas, but on the days when I actually venture out of my cave to write at the local coffee shop or attend my local writer’s group, I can choose what I please.

The only downside to writing full-time, however, is my checking account! Book royalties aren’t as stable, as let’s say, a salaried bi-monthly paycheck. In other words, when I ditched my job with the police department, I gave up my steady income.

I’m such a sucker for vintage shifts,
I buy most of my 1960’s patterns from eBay and Etsy.
So this year I decided I could still be fashionable on a budget. My grandmother taught me how to sew when I was younger, but I hadnt used a sewing machine in over 20 years, though I still felt compelled to purchase my very first sewing machine. Instincts kicked in, and within a few weeks, I had a whole new summer wardrobe.

I usually reserve my sewing projects for the mornings and use the time to think about whatever I’m currently writing as I sit in front of the machine. And by early afternoon, I’m chock full of ideas ready to be written!
Fall is around the corner, so I have already started picking out my fall fabrics!
Next up on my quest to style myself up, is learning how to use an embroidery machine (which arrives this week) because growing up and living below the Mason-Dixon line, I have a strong desire to have everything monogrammed.

Destined for Trouble
A Jules Cannon Mystery, book 1

After getting dumped by her boyfriend, FBI crime analyst Jules Cannon flees to her hometown of Trouble Island, Texas, to nurse her wounds. All she wants to do is unwind, forget about her failed relationship, and work on her tan.

But when the owner of the local crab shack is murdered at Jules’s welcome-home party, she is forced to scrap her rest-and-relaxation plans. Now her best friend, Abby Lee, is the prime suspect, and her high school sweetheart, Deputy Chief Justin Harper, is working the case. Even though Jules knows she shouldn’t, she just can’t keep herself from getting involved in the investigation—and entangled with handsome Assistant District Attorney Hartley Crawford. While an old flame threatens to rekindle and a new one sparks, Jules must find a killer and prove her friend’s innocence. But will she put two and two together before trouble catches up with her?

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1 comment:

Angela Adams said...

When I was in elementary school, my mom made all of my "special event" dresses. Although she doesn't use it any longer, she can't part with the sewing machine down her basement.