Who Do You Think You Are?

Is it just me or is anyone else out there obsessed with the TV show "Who Do You Think You Are?"
I mean, don't ask me why I care about a celebrity's ancestors. Other than the fact that some of them have some sad sacks in their family tree. It allows all the rest of us commoners to revel in a bit of schadenfreude. It's kind of fun to think that some famous star might have a Nazi sympathizer or a Revolutionary War traitor in their background.

Anyway, after watching the show a couple years ago, I was inspired to join Ancestry.com and do a little family tree building of my own. I knew just a little bit about my immediate ancestors. My father's parents immigrated to the U.S. from Denmark, so all of my ancestors on his side were Danes- "Great Danes"- as my dad would call them. I love that I have a long Danish ancestry, but I've always been more interested in American history.
Hence, my mother's side of the family. With research on ancestry.com and a bit of independent confirmation, I found some interesting information about the Smith side of my family. Turns out, that some of my direct descendants were the unfortunate victims of a Shawnee Native American attack- the Muddy Creek Massacre in West Virginia. Apparently my friendly and accommodating family members shared dinner with the Shawnee, and then the tribe paid them back for their kindness by scalping my 7th great grandfather and taking the rest of his family hostage for a year.
Now, the ancestry hints took me on a long journey through history back to English and French royalty- ultimately even to William the Conqueror! Needless to say, I have a bit of skepticism about this trail. Still, it was lots of fun.

Anybody out there have any interesting ancestry stories to share?

Bygones

Hey everybody!

I've been working with Dawn Dowdle on my latest manuscript for Bygones. It tells the story of Alexandra Hadley, a young woman who returns to her hometown after her father's death. Her life unravels when long buried secrets are revealed.

Dawn has done an amazing job, submitted it to some publishers last week. To date, we've received four requests to see the entire manuscript!

Thanks Dawn!

In the meantime, check out my first novel, At Second Sight. It's available for Kindle and Nook.

Jennifer Riordan was born to wealthy parents and a life of privilege in the sheltered haven of Chicago’s North Shore. A student of art, she wants for nothing but the proverbial home in the suburbs with a husband to love and care for her and a houseful of children. Always a good girl, Jennifer was inclined to see the same in others. Her twin sister, Melissa, was Jennifer’s exact opposite—a sexy rebel, confident and fearless.

With a burgeoning career at the Art Institute and a handsome fiancé, Jennifer’s life seems to be moving directly on course. But her safe, idyllic existence is shattered when Melissa is brutally murdered. The police are unable to find the killer and Jennifer struggles to move on. Unfortunately, it is only the first in a line of tragic events that cause her to question her judgment and fear for her own safety. Jennifer finds herself thrust into the media glare and, as a result, becomes the unwitting object of obsession for the same man who murdered her twin sister. Along the way, Jennifer discovers that some of the people she trusted and thought she knew well have betrayed her.

Cooking

It's Sunday night and I'm watching The Next Food Network Star with the family. When I'm not working, I've been known to do a little writing. But also I like to cook.

It's always nice to get some good ideas from the Food Network, but I'm not one to be super creative when it comes to food. I've tried some things and they're nearly always edible but I do better when I follow a recipe.

Case in point: I made a chocolate peanut butter cheesecake courtesy of Martha Stewart and it was quite a success according to the family.

Anyway. Now we're watching The Leftovers. It's not about food. I have no idea what it's about but it has my attention.

Bygones

Hey!
Just finished up a final edit (fingers crossed) on my manuscript: Bygones. It tells the story of Alexandra Hadley, a young woman who returns to her hometown after her father's death. She thought she had the perfect life until long buried secrets are revealed.

I've been working with Dawn Dowdle at Blue Ridge Literary Agency and hopefully soon we'll be submitting it to publishers.

In the meantime, feel free to check out At Second Sight- for sale on Kindle and Nook.

I'll keep you posted on any progress with Bygones.

Happy reading!

Yahoo and Tennis

This is generally a good sports time of year for me. I'm a huge tennis fan and the French Open is over- Vamos Rafa Nadal!!!- and we are now in the midst of Wimbledon.

Having said that, all year long when I open my Yahoo page, I search for tennis related articles. Yahoo now realizes that I am interested in all things tennis. So much so, that I now find tons of tennis articles front and center every time I look at Yahoo. Most of the time, I'm okay with that.

However, now as the French and Wimbledon matches are aired early in the morning and/or when I'm at work, my DVR quickly fills with grand slam action. I have to wait until evening to watch.

Try as I might to stay away from TV and radio during the day, I find it nearly impossible to stay off the Internet. I won't even be thinking about it and my home page comes up and the first article states glaringly: "Djokovic moves on" or "Federer out" or "Nadal is French Champion". It makes me want to scream. Ruins my day every time.

How can I make Yahoo think that I really hate tennis during the Slams?

On writing and soccer

It's Sunday afternoon and I should be writing. I have a full time job and on Sunday afternoons I should be writing.
Usually I would pay some bills instead. Do some laundry. Even clean the house.
But today, I have soccer. No: "futbol". The last time I watched a soccer game was when the American women won the Worlds Cup final against China and there was the now infamous Brandy Chastain sports bra episode.
I am not a soccer fan. I don't get it. You can kick the ball and bounce it off your head, but no hands? And tell me, why the time clock? The ball goes out of bounds and the clock runs. The ball is kicked into the stands out of play and the clock runs. A goal is scored and a celebration goes on forever and the clock runs?
I don't get it. Yet, here I am on a late Sunday afternoon watching the USA team play Portugal.
All so I don't have to write.
So:

U-S-A    U-S-A   U-S-A   U-S-A  U-S-A   U-S-A

Hi everyone!
Not long ago, I published my first book, At Second Sight.

Jennifer Riordan was born to wealthy parents and a life of privilege in the sheltered haven of Chicago’s North Shore. A student of art, she wants for nothing but the proverbial home in the suburbs with a husband to love and care for her and a houseful of children. Always a good girl, Jennifer was inclined to see the same in others. Her twin sister, Melissa, was Jennifer’s exact opposite—a sexy rebel, confident and fearless.

With a burgeoning career at the Art Institute and a handsome fiancé, Jennifer’s life seems to be moving directly on course. But her safe, idyllic existence is shattered when Melissa is brutally murdered. The police are unable to find the killer and Jennifer struggles to move on. Unfortunately, it is only the first in a line of tragic events that cause her to question her judgment and fear for her own safety. Jennifer finds herself thrust into the media glare and, as a result, becomes the unwitting object of obsession for the same man who murdered her twin sister. Along the way, Jennifer discovers that some of the people she trusted and thought she knew well have betrayed her.

You can check it out for your kindle: http://www.amazon.com/At-Second-Sight-Lisa-Nielsen-ebook/dp/B00EN0ZFI0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1401759611&sr=1-1&keywords=lisa+nielsen

Or for your nook:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/at-second-sight-lisa-nielsen/1118638475?ean=2940148157632

If you buy it and like it, leave me a review!!