These Girls Are Connected

Please welcome Bri Clark.

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Call me vain, conceded, stuck in the Middle Ages whatever but I love my breasts. We go way back to the fourth grade where I'd daily fight with my poor mother about wearing a bra. I'm not talking about a training bra either. I woke up one morning to a B. A B-cup at 10! Shortly after Aunt Flow began her monthly visits. I hate her she can leave anytime.

But not my girls.

Why this post on losing my cleavage? Well once in my life I seriously considered breast reduction surgery. At 5'10 and curvy I'm very well endowed. At that point in my life, I was too heavy up top among other places. After my fourth child, my back really took a beating and the weight that pulled on my shoulders from my chest left indentions in my skin from the straps. My grandmother actually has scarring.

So I researched what breast reduction meant at 23 years old. After a documentary, some before and after pictures and a scheduled then canceled consultation I decided to never have that surgery performed willingly. My mother did eventually get it and was very happy. However, she was herself in her 40's at the time. I won't go into details but I figure spending the first few years hating my chest then finally find a love for it I'm not going to choose to change 'em unless it's a life and death situation. Luckily, I haven't faced that and hope I don't. Instead I endeavored to lose weight by working out and strengthening my back and core.

Now I'll discuss the unforeseen culprit. All my life I've struggled with weight. I'm not thin--a size 10 is my goal. Actually, I feel that my goal to look like a blonde Jessica Rabbit is perfectly reasonable. In fact at the moment my 3 work out buddies are considered boot camp whores 'cause we bounce to each new trial or discounted membership. Thus, we come to the problem.

For 2 years, I have risen with these friends at odarkthirty and walked for one hour 5xs a week roughly, 20 miles a week. Then we started boot camps. Sigh. After pushups, running, core training, blah, blah, blah I have lost 20lbs and 4 inches across my chest. Yep you read correctly 4 inches across my freaking chest!

I'll pause for a moment so you too can mourn those four beautiful inches forever lost.

Pause

OK back to the problem...this wouldn't be so bad if I'd lost it in my middle too. NO! I've only lost an inch (since I've been counting) in my hips and waist. Alas, what to do? Eat the Costco Halloween candy I bought early; gorge on a gallon of ice cream? Which brings me to the ultimate question--I know one of you knows what the answer is--what can I eat that will go straight to my chest?

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If you want to continue to see my battle with my body or to check out the writing and industry, related topics I rant and sass about check me out here. Or you can find me on Facebook or Twitter. Thanks to all you ladies at 4SW for the rant. I love the blog. It is so nice to not be the only sassy mouth in the world.

BIO

Bri Clark is a real example of redemption and renewal. Growing penniless in the South, Bri learned street smarts while caring for her brother in a broken home. She watched her mother work several jobs to care for their small family. Once her brother could fend for himself, Bri moved on to a series of bad choices including leaving school and living on her own. Rebelliousness was a strong understatement to describe those formative years. As a teenager, her wakeup call came from a fight with brass knuckles and a judge that gave her a choice of shaping up or spending time in jail. She took that opportunity and found a way to moved up from the streets. She ended up co-owning an extremely successful construction business. She lived the high life until the real estate crash when she lost everything. She moved west and found herself living with her husband and 4 kids in a 900 square foot apartment. She now fills her time, writing, blogging, leading a group of frugal shoppers and sharing her southern culture. Her unique background gives her writing a raw sensibility. She understands what it takes to overcome life's obstacles. She often tells friends, "I can do poor. I'm good at poor. It's prosperity that I'm not used to." Bri and her husband Chris live in Boise. Bri is known as the Belle of Boise for her true southern accent, bold demeanor and hospitable nature.

Bri boasts several positions in the publishing industry. An author, professional reviewer, blogger, and author platform consultant she enjoys all aspects of her career from the creation of story to the branding and marketing needed to make her books successful.

Her latest book is Glazier, a romantic fantasy adventure novel with espionage, genetic powers, underground bases and a ginger beauty with memory issues that take you on a ride that begins in Vermont and comes to a head in Egypt.

Interview

Ava James!

M.E: Hiya Ava! Lovely jubbly to have you here, m’dear. How are you feeling today—and no, I’m not a psychologist, I just feel like acting a prat.

Ava: Great, besides the cold front that is raging outdoors. I like the cool weather in fall and the pretty colors, but it seems that time has passed here in Missouri. *Sigh*

M.E: That’s a bummer, and I know what you mean. It got really cold here a couple of weeks ago, but now it has warmed up a little.

So, do you have any confessions about where your inspiration for writing romance comes from? Like, umm, have any of your love scenes happened for real? And does the guy know his willy now features in a book/tale?

Ava: My inspiration is life. Or what life could be. I like to delve into fantastical worlds where anything is possible.

With my book, The Eagle at Midnight, dedicated to my husband, you can only guess whose willy is featured. He knows it is dedicated to him, but he isn’t much of a reader. More of an action man, so let your imagination run wild there.

M.E: Action man brings boy toys to mind (not those ones!). The lads here can play with a Barbie-like doll that’s called Action Man.



Do you create your female characters based on yourself, or do you give them attributes you wish you had? For me, I’d have a character with boobs, because I have bee stings the shape of bananas.

Ava: I want them to be strong women with a sense of humour and their fair share of flaws. Some of my friends say that they see me in my characters, especially in their funny remarks.

Physically, I write whatever woman fits the story. Deryn, the heroine in The Eagle at Midnight, regrets being without her granny panties on one particular occasion.

M.E: Oh, I have several pairs of them. I call them my Gok Gwons. There’s this guy here in the UK on TV who helps women make the best of what figure they have. There are these hosiery-type pants that go from the knee to just under your boobies. Only thing is, they roll down to the waist. Still, they hold it all in without causing cracked ribs.

Similar question, but about the male character. Is he always your dream man? I have a feeling I know the answer to this one, and it involves the name David Beckham….





Ava: Llaw, my hero in The Eagle at Midnight, resembles the soccer star and is a fantasy man. But I also like the everyday guy, the one that we all meet and fall for in real life. Demetri Tiberius, my hero in Waking Up, is more the everyday guy. He’s the one that has encountered cottage cheese thighs and lived to tell the tale.

M.E: Hahahahah.

What’s next on your writing agenda?

Ava: Writing more romance, of course. I have three up-coming releases, two of which are in December. The Eagle at Midnight will be released from Freya’s Bower Dec. 2nd, and Waking Up will be released in the One Touch, One Glance Sweet Romance Anthology on Dec 9th. My third story, A Crone’s Query, is soon to come to Wild Child Publishing.

There are always more stories to tell, and I am currently working on a few such tales.

M.E: I loved all your tales, especially The Eagle at Midnight because I got to imagine Mr. Beckham, who I think is quite a dish so long as he doesn’t open his mouth and show those awful teeth. Bless him.


As you know, I adored the crone in A Crone’s Query. That part where she says “Ey?” still makes me smile when I think about it, and that’s what’s so special about writing. You get to ‘touch’ people with it, and that dialogue will remain with me forever. Amazing that we have the power as humans to influence lives we would never have dreamed possible.

Do you plan to write anything out of your comfort zone? What would that be?

Ava: No. Out of my comfort zone includes the major no-no topics. I will never write anything that involves rape. I am a member of the local Sexual Assault Response Team, so when there is a rape reported in our county, I am one of the people they call to support the victim while they are in the hospital. No one should ever suffer through something as damaging as that, and I would never write anything that involved such an act.

M.E: That’s got to be tough doing that. You must be a very strong woman.

Let’s veer away from writing now. What’s your favourite drink—the one drink you’d pick if it was the only drink left on the planet?

Ava: Alcoholic drink? Yin-Yang. A fabulous chocolate martini that you can only get at this fondue place called The Melting Pot. It has a delicious blend of white and dark Godiva chocolate shavings on the top to form the yin and yang. It’s smooth, sweet, and decadent.

If I can’t get the alcohol, ice cold water.

M.E: That sounds lovely. The water does too. I really must go back to drinking water.

Do you have any embarrassing occurrences you’d like to share? Or, if you wouldn’t like to share them, I’m prodding you to share them anyway. Go on, be a devil….

Ava: Okay, pushy, picture this…I am fifteen, on the stairs in line for the new, really tall water slide at the local water park. The line is very long, and I’ve been waiting a good long while to ride this new attraction.

The boys in front of me keep looking back and giggling. They are a few years younger than me, so I try to ignore them. But they carry on, so I ask, “What’s your problem?”

“Nothing,” the taller one replies, barely keeping a straight face, before turning back around.

Irritated, I turn to my friend standing on the step behind me and ask, “What’s with them?”

“Umm, you’re sticking out!” she says in a hushed voice, a panicked expression on her face.

I look down to where her eyes are fixed and realize that half of my left nipple is sticking out of my swimsuit top.

Did I get out of line, run to the bathroom in humiliation, and call my parents to pick me up?

No. I re-adjusted the top, turned around, and informed the boys that if they didn’t shut the bleep up I’d kick their scrawny butts. I was a mouthy little lady.

M.E: LOL @ ‘pushy’. I’d have been mortified in your position, what with the banana aspect. In fact, at that age, I don’t think I owned anything in the chest department BUT nipples!

What’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for you?

Ava: I am a nanny for a wonderful and very high-profile family. They are the president and vice president of two major international corporations. So, on my birthday last year, the children made a ridiculous excuse of having to show me the Lego town they’d built and continued to barrage me with things I “had to see.”

At 5:00 on the dot, Brooke, their eleven-year-old daughter, says that we should go to the kitchen. When we walk into the kitchen, both her parents are there with a giant banner the kids made, a cake and candles, and a grilled steak dinner that they had prepared just for me.

I could have said the sweetest thing was when my husband proposed, but I thought this ranked pretty high.

M.E: Awww, that’s really lovely. I could just eat a steak now, despite it being only 9 a.m.

When was the last time you laughed so hard your ribs hurt? And what was so funny?

Ava: Good one—ever heard the song White and Nerdy? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xEzGIuY7kw Watch the video and you would know exactly what Weird Al Yankovic was doing to make me LMAO.

M.E: That is really creepy, because I watched a few of his songs last night before you sent this back. How weird? I laughed out loud at a few, but White and Nerdy was my fave.

What do you want for Christmas?

Ava: A 1967 Corvette Stingray convertible, in factory light blue with white interior and roof. I am fairly certain the elves are all out of this, but I would certainly take a rain check. Could you see if they have any 1969 Plymouth Hemi Barracuda Convertibles in red and white, complete with 440 side panels? That’d be just as good.

M.E: I’ll ask Santa if that’s possible, though I don’t want you blaming me if the old geezer doesn’t deliver!

Ava: Honestly, one of my long time wishes is coming true with the release of my first book.

Thank you for having me and helping me achieve one of my goals!

M.E: Well, now. Fancy making your pushy editor cry! You’re most welcome, my dear. You’re a pleasure to work with.

Well, folks, that wraps up our little chat with the wonderfully talented Ava James. To find out more, visit her website and blog.