It's THAT Time of Year Again

Yes, yes it is.  You all know what I'm talking about.

Time to change the calendars and psych ourselves up for remembering to write 2015 instead of 2014.

Time to rethink life habits and either set goals or resolutions for the upcoming year.  Many of these are the same year after year, not necessarily because we've failed but because we want to do better.

Time to look back and reflect on the past year: everything we've accomplished; everything we've lost; everything we've gained; the good, the bad, and the ugly.  And time to look forward into out hopes and dreams, even if the only hope we have is for the next year to be better than the one ending.  (This is why January is named after the god Janus; he had two faces - one looking forward, one looking back and was the god of gateways.)

Judging by some of the statuses I've seen on Facebook, a lot of us have had a rough time of it in 2014 and are not sad to see it go.  Divorces and deaths balances out the births and the other good things that happened I guess; although it honestly doesn't feel like it sometimes, does it?  But the best we can do is exactly that, our best.  Weather the worst life has to throw at us and treasure the good.

My own year was full of ups and downs, just like everyone else's.  Was it a good year or a bad year?  I don't really know if I'd say it was either way.  I know that it's ending happier than it began, and for that much I am grateful.

I am like everyone else, thinking about what changes I can make in the new year to make my life better.  Some things I have no choice about.  Like tightening up on my diet in order to better control my diabetes and lose weight.  A few months ago while I was off work, my blood sugar went all wonky and the Endocrinologist put me on a second medicine.  I was not happy about that, and it bummer me out for a few days.  Especially since I have to pay $60 for it even though it's covered by my health insurance.  But the foot doctor returned me back to work for 4 hours a day even though the tear in my tendon has not healed and he's decided that surgery is the next step.  Those few hours were enough to start my blood sugars evening out, even though my foot doesn't like it one bit.

The surgery isn't scheduled yet, but will be near the end of January or the beginning of February.  It all depends on when my husband will be able to go back to work.  He's been off because he tweaked something in his shoulder.  He now knows exactly how the cortisone shots to my foot feel as he's had one now.  Thankfully, it seems to be helping him more than they did me.

Although I have not seen stellar sales for Ring of Fire, which is 99cents for the next three days, it has been released and I have sold a few.  I'm a little nervous as I await those customer reviews as the second book isn't like the first one, even though it's the same characters.  Our characters were changed by the events surrounding Angela's kidnapping in the first novel, so it was logical to change the feel of their world.  We get to see more of Craig's family, even meet his imprisoned brother.  So of course, one of my goals for the new year is to sell more books (as always) and finish/release the third one in the series.

And of course, the best way to increase my reader base, is to be smarter on social media.  I've been very lackadaisical about it.  I don't Tweet enough, even though I like Twitter.  And I don't get on Google+ enough either, even though I like it better than Facebook.  So I do have to come up with some kind of strategy for my favorite outlets.  I know I need to write out some kind of blog posting schedule and plan, for both this blog and Broads of a Feather.  I may post only every other week, but my posts have been getting later and later each week!  I don't feel too bad because my partner has been having the same problem.

So far all I've done is think about it, and I really need to start writing things down.  It will be more 'real' that way and I'll be able to hold myself more accountable.  I've been thinking about doing an email list, but I haven't made my mind up yet.  Would any of you be interesting in receiving periodic emails from me, letting you know when I've updated my blog and updates on books?

I also have some research to be doing.  I need to read up on writing non-fiction and biographies.  I should be able to figure it out, after all I'm a smart enough girl when it comes to the written world.  I'm no Stephen King (yet) but I'm not exactly a hack either!

Whatever your plans are for ringing in the New Year. be safe and have fun!  We want to be able to hang out together in the future!  There is still so much left for us to do!

2014 ~ Soon to be a distant memory...

Mother's Day In November

First off, I have to say that I absolutely loved Carol's latest post at Broads of a Feather, and not just because she referenced two of my favorite things: Zombies and House MD!  Her post tied into my feelings this week about appreciating our parents because we never now how long we're going to have them around.

It all started when Carol shared a sad news story about a mother who ended her own child's life.  The child was autistic, her husband had health problems and she was at the end of her ropes.  She made a terrible choice and will probably never forgive herself.  It caused me to reflect on my own childhood and I was overwhelmed with gratitude that my mother never cracked like this woman did.

Glenn and Rosemary Slater
November 1979

And really, she could have.

I know the stories don't compare.  No two stories ever will.  There will always be differences in background, in upbringing, in personality and temperament.  None of us kids were autistic.  But my mom had five of us to raise while she tended her sick husband.  We weren't always a good help to her.

I have a lot of memories that I won't go into, because they involve more than just myself and it wouldn't be fair to go telling tales.  We weren't any worse or any better than any other kids, I imagine.  We could have been better behaved, but we could have been worse too.  When I spoke to Mom about this earlier this week, I told her to never feel like she was a failure at being a parent even when us kids fight amongst ourselves...because through it all she never cracked and she managed to get us all to adulthood and "normal" enough.

In a lot of ways, she almost had 6 kids.  I forget exactly what year it was, I was either 12 or 13, my father had to have surgery to untangle his bowels from the scar tissue that had formed after his appendectomy about a year and a half before.  I don't even remember which surgery it was, as he had several in a short amount of time, but during one he had a stroke either on the operating table or just before.

It changed all our lives, because he never recovered 100%.  It always seemed to be one complication after another.  I don't know if it was because he was diabetic or that his body was just as cantankerous as he was.  He never forgave the doctor that removed the respirator over a week after that fateful surgery and gave him a tracheotomy - because he never got rid of it.  I remember they tried once, but once again his body produced too much scar tissue and it began closing off his windpipe completely.

He ended up having to go to a hospital in Philadelphia to have laser surgery and have 2 inches of his trachea removed.  If memory serves, he was there for six weeks.  Mom only got to go down and see him once.

He died when I was 18, almost 19.  From complications of a second stroke.

I miss him this time of year, even though he wasn't always easy to get along with and really kind of had a tendency to be abusive especially after his stroke.  No matter what, he was my Dad.  I don't really remember much of the man he used to be before his stroke.  That part is like fading mist.  My favorite memory of him was when I was maybe 4, and hounding him for a peanut butter cake.  Even though I was interrupting the grown ups, he stopped what he was doing and pulled out his recipe books and started searching for a recipe for peanut butter cake.  In the end I think I got a chocolate mayonnaise cake with peanut butter frosting.  I remember how we used to go for rides during the Christmas season just to look at the lights and decorations.

I'm not sure how Mom dealt with her stress.  I know she had friends she talked to, and her sister.  I don't remember her ever getting a break, unless you count the times Dad was in the hospital, but I don't because I know how hard it was for her then too.  Dad expected her to visit him everyday.  I have more than a few memories of us 5 younger kids spending our evenings playing in the hospital parking lot and yard while she was in seeing him.

I know when I called and told her all this, how much I appreciated her not cracking under the pressure, that she was a little taken aback.  I mean, it was all out of the blue for her.  So I explained about the article and how it made me appreciate her more.  I told her how I had thought about tagging her in the Facebook comments, but I decided to call her and tell her instead.  Kind of a Mother's Day sentiment in November.

And that's kind of the point.  Life is short and we need to let people now that we love them and appreciate them, even if we don't agree with the choices they've made with their lives, even if we can't always get along with them.  Because all too soon, someone isn't going to be there anymore and we'll regret all the things we never said.  While I regret how many years lapsed between the last time I saw my oldest brother Glenn and the day of his funeral, I don't regret the last time we did see each other.  It was a family picnic and as we were packing up to leave, we gave each other a hug and said 'I love you'.

So, take a moment of your time and give someone a call and let them know you love them.  Because you never know when there isn't going to be a 'next' time.  Especially your parents.  They might not have been the best, they probably made mistakes and failed you or judged you.  But if you survived to adulthood, relatively sane enough, they didn't completely mess up.

And to all my readers, I appreciate you as well.  Without you, I might as well be sending words into empty space.  I am working hard at proofing my second novel (I might have to increase the font size for the paperback.)

Leaving you with a picture of one of the few times all of us kids were home.  It was for our Dad's 60th birthday, which also happened to be Thanksgiving that year (Mom - correct me if I'm wrong, it's too late to call to check lol)  Mom is of course behind the camera.

November 23, 1989
Glenn Slater and his ten kids :)

2014 ~ No regrets...

MRI's and Country Music

Nothing to do with the post, just some pretty flowers from early fall...

I was at the hospital 4 hours Monday, just trying to get an MRI done on my foot.  Although I arrived a few minutes late, I had no doubts about it being a short wait.  It usually is and there was only one other person waiting with me.

But I was told I needed blood work since I hadn't had any done in the past three months.  Ugh.  I had nowhere else I needed to be so I told them I would be fine waiting for them to get in contact with my doctor so he could order the needed test.  Which wasn't working out because apparently the office was closed on this particular Monday (I've had appointments there before on Monday afternoons, so I didn't think anything of it).  So they ended up calling my general doctor and getting the order from her - but it still took almost 2 hours for all this to happen.

But, it did end up happening and I think I spent close to another hour in the machine.  I don't know if this is usual in all facilities, but here we are given headphones and asked what our music preference is.  Now, despite the title of my series, I like a lot of different music styles.  On my iTunes list, I have country songs side by side with rock, pop, and 'Christian' songs.  Alan Jackson, Newsboys, Bryan Adams, James Blunt and The Rolling Stones peacefully coexist.  I decided a few years ago to listen to whatever I liked, whether it was considered 'godly' by the Church or not.  I have learned a lot by listening to...shall we say...more colorful music.

That truly is a subject for another time.  Because in this instance, I chose to listen to Country music.  And right off the bat the first two were on my favorites list (I have a long list of "favorites").  God Gave Me You by Dave Barnes and We Owned the Night by Lady Antebellum.  I was like..."Yeah, here we go..."  Of course, I had to listen to songs that rubbed me the wrong way.  After all, it wasn't like being in the car and flipping the radio channels whenever the song irritated or bored me.  And even still. they helped distract me from the pain of trying to lay still for so long in a cold room on a slab that made my achy breaky back ache.

"You called me...to take a picture???" Yes, I petted her for her trouble!

I've got my iTunes playing now, trying to dispel the gloom of the day.  The sky is cloudy and unsure of whether it wants to rain or not.  Every so often I'll flip to the other screen and add songs to the "up next" list (Alan Jackson is playing at the moment and Mumford & Sons is up next).  It's just me and the dog trying not to think too much on Carol's latest blog over at Broads of a Feather and the ghostly dreams I had this morning...well, the dog isn't too worried about that.  Jaclyn's more concerned about any cats that might be walking by outside.

But the gloom makes for a good writing and reading day.  While I'm waiting for my paperback proof to arrive in the mail, I'm glancing through my free-write of my third novel to see how much of it I can still use (a good bit, but some will need to be changed) and reading The White Princess by Philippa Gregory.  I'm liking it so far, even though it's written in 1st person perspective, which is not my favorite.

I hope everyone is having a good enough week, with time to read, and staying warm as the seasons change.



2014 - Fading as the fall colors

A Few of My Favorite Women in Books

I made my last blog post about Robin Williams unfortunate death over at Broads of a Feather's blog.  I do not have it in me to continue writing about him, not any time soon.  And I would not want to add to his family's suffering in any way (as if any of them will ever stumble upon my posts!)  So back to my planned posts.

I've been giving this a lot of thought the past week, and to continue my small series on how women are portrayed in entertainment, I'm going to break it into two different posts.  Women in Books, and Film.

In general, I tend to stick with what I like to read.  Occasionally I'll venture out and try a new author or genre.  I ventured out of my norm and read Phoenix Island by John Dixon recently.  It was enjoyable enough; I had no problem finishing it, even though in my opinion it is "Lord of the Flies meets Hunger Games".  And unfortunately, it fails the Bechtel Test.  One conversation between the female First Sergeant and the female love interest about an incident "happening a certain way" isn't exactly stellar.  But onto two of my favorite chicks to read.

Nynaeve al'Meara

Although I've read Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time books to death, I still reread them.  I like to visit the universe.  Largely because it is one of the epic fantasy universes in which women are on equal standing with men.  There is the usual gender griping: the men thinking the women don't know anything and vice versa, but hey - that's pretty normal even in our universe.

In some cases in Jordan's imagined world, the women are in positions of leadership even above men.  More respected even.  Perhaps because it was the men who Broke the World.  (It can be argued that the world was Broken because the women refused to help the men, but hindsight is always 20/20)

Most of the nations in the world are monarchies.  With as many queens as there are kings.  Villages are ruled by both a Village Council (male) and a Women's Circle.  The two councils battle it out in such a way that each think they hold more sway. Typically the Village Council is led by the Mayor and the Women's Circle by the Wisdom.  The Wisdom is the village healer/weather forecaster/wise woman.  You can go to her to have your illnesses healed, or have her settle an argument you're having with a friend.  The most notable Wisdom in the Wheel of Time series is Nynaeve al'Meara.

At least, that's how her character starts out.  By the time the books end, Nynaeve has progressed from Village Wisdom to being an Aes Sedai of the Yellow Ajah and Queen of Malkier.  For those of you unfamiliar with these stories, think of an Aes Sedai as Jedi. They are the series' magician servants of the known world.  Nynaeve is not only one of the most powerful Aes Sedai since the Breaking of the World, but she's gone head to head with one the Forsaken from the Age of Legends and matched that woman in the Power.

Nynaeve is head-strong, and confident (even over confident).  Her inclination to heal people of wounds and illnesses drives her to discovering not only new ways to heal, but also discovering ways to heal what was once thought incurable.  From the severing of a person from the One Power to the madness caused by the taint on the male side of the Power.  She has a soft spot for children.  She is brave enough to hunt the Black Ajah (evil), brave enough to walk in the World of Dreams, brave even though she thinks of herself as a coward.  She is also short-tempered, arrogant, prideful and in the beginning she was something of a bully.

Women are a bright shining beacon in the world around them

She routinely pisses me off and amuses me.  The complexity of her character is believable and seemingly well thought out.    In many ways, she is a typical woman.  More powerful than she realizes because she's so afraid of wielding her power that she's managed to block herself from using it.  I think we are all guilty of that at some point in our lives.  Nyaneve, this small town woman from the middle of nowhere ends up participating in some of the most important turning points of this society, from the cleansing of the male half of the One Power to aiding the Dragon Reborn in the Last Battle.

While the series is about the three young men from the same village being focal points and shifting the lives of everyone around them, they could not accomplish half of what they did without the women who accompanied them.  As the series progresses, we see more and more from the women's viewpoints.  And in the end, their greatest feats were won when they worked together.

Not my mental image of Eve, but she'll do

My other favorite woman to read about in fiction doesn't have an image I can share.  Although in the beginning Nora Roberts (AKA JD Robb) posed as the main character in her In Death Series, I'm not sure she counts.  There does seem to be a lot of fan art of Eve Dallas, as well as the other characters in her world.

The In Death Series is the opposite end of the spectrum from Wheel of Time.  WoT is epic fantasy, complete with swords and horseback travel.  In Death is a futuristic world where cops have traded in guns for what amounts to Tazers and vehicles can go vertical at a moments notice.

I'll be honest, I haven't read every single book in the series - yet.  But it is one of my life's goals.  I like the books, because it's easy enough to figure out what's going on that you don't necessarily have to read them in order.  The Romance/Mystery/Crime Drama novels are light and fun, though they can go deep.

Eve Dallas is a far more tragic character than Nynaeve in that her past holds far more trauma.  Determined not to be a victim for the rest of her life, Eve rises above her childhood abuse and creates a life for herself where she needs no one and depends on no one.  A lieutenant in the the New York City police force, where the rules are definitely different from what we have here in the real world, Eve investigates homicides.  However her sense of duty usually lands her in an non-murder incident at least once in a book.  Usually it's a petty pocket thief she's caught while she and her partner are taking a lunch break on the street, or a taxi/minivan accident in the traffic she loves to hate.

Due out in September

While her romance with Roarke, one of the world's richest people, is typical of the Romance genre (quick attraction/quick to bed etc.) it doesn't end there.  Because it is an ongoing series, we get to watch Eve and Roarke (who is another emotionally starved person) learn how to love each other fully.  When you have two strong personalities, both of whom are used to living independent lifestyles, there are bound to be clashes and learning curves for both sides.

Eve has a tough exterior, and an even tougher interior, that covers up a vulnerable woman.  And I like reading about her because of that.  She is proud to be labeled 'top bitch cop' and tends to be embarrassed by the press coverage of her more sensational cases (the Icove Clones) that bring her more popularity of her own.

She has her weaknesses.  Chocolate.  Coffee.  Children terrify her, even as she is driven to protect them.  The woman has more layers than an onion as something new is revealed about her complexity in each book.

Whether she'd ever admit it or not, Eve is what the series calls a sensitive.  Bordering on ESP, one of the ways Eve can solve the tough cases is she knows how to think like the criminal.  She can walk through a crime scene and almost visualize the crime.  It disturbs and awes her partner Peabody on a regular basis.  We all have our talents and this is one of Eve's.

I don't know about you, but I like reading about women who are more than a cookie cutter cutout. I know that there are stereotypical people in real life, but I deal enough with them on a daily basis.  I want to read about someone who's different from those around her.  Having never felt safe to reveal the 'secret me' to anyone, I like reading about women who have more than one facet to their personalities.  I feel that both the women I've mentioned here today exhibit those qualities.  Not everyone will agree, and that's okay.  Different characters will speak to different people.  What draws me, might not be the same that draws you.  Thankfully there are many female characters that fill this bill, these are just two I've read recently that I enjoy.

The really tough part will be picking two women in film to write about!  But I'll be tackling that next post, which given I posted at Broads this week as well, won't be until next week.

Off topic question - any comments about my background tweaks?



2014 ~ Too much sadness

Click HERE :)

Impulse Blogging: Not For Every Post!

In some things, I am a perfectionist.

You'd never know this by how I keep house, I have spiderwebs in the corners and dust on my figurines.  But then, the spiders and I do have this agreement - as long as they stay out of my reach, they get to live!

But when it comes to writing, I pull out the magnifying glass.  It doesn't matter whether it's a novel, a poem or a blog post...deep down I never feel like it's finished or good enough.

While I've been blogging in one form or another since 2005, I am still learning. Especially since I began to blog as part of my online platform as an Indie Author. There are a lot of things I am still trying to "define" or consciously remember as I type.  Like writing for my target audience instead of everyone.

Rebekah Radice, my favorite social media guru, shared some of her advice from her own blogging experience in this GooglePlus Hangout recently.  I've heard and read a lot of it before, but that doesn't always mean I've actually thought about the topic.  You can watch it here if you're a fellow blogger just getting started, or if like me you've been blogging for years and need to make changes.

One thing I've never given too much thought about has been the color of my blog.  I have the color scheme that I do pretty much just because I like it.  I like purple.  It's says "pretty" to me.  I may end up looking into color psychology, but whether I'll ever change the color - I don't know.  It depends on whether that's the message I decide I want to send!  I do wonder what a yellow based blog would look like, because yellow says Happy!! to me.  We'll have to see about that one.

The list never really ends, does it?  lol :)

Another thing that came up in the video was which blogging platform was best.  +Rebekah Radice is a WordPress fan, because it gives you ownership of your own content.  Which apparently not true of Blogger.  Say What???  I've used Blogger since day one.  Never gave much thought to who 'owned' what I post.  I may have to look into that.  But there's no hurry at this moment.  Just one more thing on my To Do List!

I started out with a pretty frilly font, but I like what I have now better.  There weren't any complaints, but since I kept wondering if anyone had any trouble reading it, I decided I'd better change it.  Because if it was frilly enough that I was wondering, odds are there were people out there going, "I wish she'd write in a different font."

One thing I really need to get cracking on is formulating some kind of blog schedule.  Most of the time I have no idea what I'm going to be writing about.  Even this post came as a surprise to me, after I watched the video interview.  Even if I end up breaking it, I ought to plan ahead a bit better.  Especially since I went a few looooooooong weeks without internet in my home and wasn't able to get into my account on outside computers (thanks to two-step verification!!)  If I had been smart, I would have had posts written and scheduled for publication.  I mean, I knew it was going to happen!

There is nothing wrong with being spontaneous and blogging about something off the cuff.  Or even looking at your scheduled topics and changing your mind.  But if you don't have that list to look at, each time you...uhm, I...sit down to write a post - you're starting from scratch and sometimes you...uhm, I...just draw this blank.  All too often I am an Impulse Blogger - and while that can be a strength, like today's post, it's not something I should rely on for every post!  Tweet it!

Now if I will just be able to decipher all my shorthand...

Likewise, there's nothing wrong with just writing a short post updating readers on what's going on in your life.  My life.  I say YOU, when I really mean ME because it's easier to preach if I can pretend I'm not talking to myself!  All too often recently there hasn't been anything interesting to report!  "Yup, another blah day - did physical therapy, got hubby to work, hung out with friends."  People will get tired of those kind of posts pretty darn quick!  I know I do!

Now, I do have a great story to relate about an awesome anniversary gift from my in-laws...but I have to take pictures first.  Trust me on that one!

I did take notes while I watched the video, of things I know I need to pay attention to.  A lot of great things to ponder and consider.  I even hit pause a time or two because my fingers just weren't cooperating and I couldn't write fast enough!  Because this isn't even the only blog I have to think about!  I have to apply this to the blog I co-author with C.P. Stringham, Broads of a Feather.  At least when it comes to my own posts.

Speaking of which, I need to switch gears.  This week is my week to post...and well, yeah I need a schedule of some kind for that blog too because...I don't know what I'm writing about yet!  I'd better do some brain storming!  (And some laundry...)

2014 ~ A year of more changes...

Broads of a Feather at the Library

Opening remarks :)

This past Saturday, my author cohort and friend C.P. Stringham and I had a presentation about being independent authors at the Spalding Memorial Library in Athens, PA, just one of our many local libraries.

And it went really well.  There was a comfortable amount of people there for both of us - the seats weren't all filled, but neither were they all empty. I'm not counting the little kids seats in the front row because I don't think they were used.

It was a mixed audience, men and women, young and old.  Even Mr. Janney was kind enough to come along and snap some pics for me.  He even managed to stay awake for it all!  Mr. Janney's not much of a reader, and he doesn't always get what I'm up to on the computer.  There was one moment when I made a comment to the audience about how I hoped I wasn't boring them that Mr. Janney fake snored and got tons of laughs from everyone.  That's why I married him!  I couldn't have planned that half so well!

After we were done sharing our experiences breaking into print though independent publishing we opened it up for questions from the audience.  And they had a few, which was good.  One woman who prefers writing her material out longhand wanted to know if there was any way around transcribing it to the computer.  Not really.  Unless she hires someone to do it for her, but like I said to her that for me personally - I still write things out longhand (especially when I'm at work and the computer is at home) and I find that copying it to the computer is just another part of the creative process.  For me when I sit down at the computer, another door opens for me and the juices kick in - there's a difference to it that I don't have words for, but to me it's just another doorway into my imaginary universe and I have no problem walking through that door and writing what I see and hear.

uhm ,yeah ...... about that ......

There was one older gentleman, who had some questions for us that quite frankly we didn't really have answers for.  I'm pretty sure this explains the looks on our faces in this second picture. (That's CP's daughter Sydney standing in the middle)  He had published a book about 30 some years ago and had questions about copyrighting.  Not a clue.  Neither CP or I go through any other form of copyrighting outside of the Kindle Direct Publishing. Which we told him.

And that we didn't have to pay anything upfront for publishing; it all comes out of the price of the book.  Amazon gets a portion, and we get a portion.  Simple.  It means that even the most financially challenged writer can get published.

I'm still not sure what he'll need to do about using the same cover he used the last time, as it was not his own cover art.  CP and I both do our own cover art.  I've toyed with the idea of contacting a Facebook friend to see if he'd do something for me at a reasonable price, but that's as far as I've gotten so far.

All in all, despite the shaky start to Mr. Janney and my day, everything went well.  I was a little worried that I might have to end up cancelling because of a family emergency, but thankfully the relative ended up stabilizing somewhat before the afternoon.  We've both had enough loss in our life recently and were thankful for the change.

I'm looking forward to our next presentation already, although it has yet to be scheduled.  I've got all sorts of ideas in my head as to how better to present myself so I don't stumble over my own words (I didn't do too badly).  I'll have to take some time and look the PowerPoint over again and take some notes.  Maybe have something written down for some of the slides so I'm not standing there wondering what was going through my head when I asked for it.

CP and I make a pretty good team.

I really need to work on keeping my eyes open more or Mr. Janney needs to work on his photography - one or the other!

2014 ~ Teamwork rocks!

The Week of "Meh"

This has been a rather blah week.  I haven't been feeling good and that throws everything out of whack.  I even tried blogging about "nothing" last night - but it just sounded whiny so I tossed it in the bin.  I don't like to read whiny blog posts, so I imagine you don't either.

Photo art by Tiffany Robbins-Gigee

I'm getting a little nervous about next Saturday. Next Saturday C.P. Stringham and I, the chicks over at Broads of a Feather, will be doing our first library presentation.  I'm more excited though.  I mean, I know that once it gets going - I'm going to be loving it.  It's just about not getting myself worked up about it beforehand!

Regardless, I'm feeling a bit better tonight.  But then I've gotten to hang with Mr. Janney and had a good birthday celebration for him.  Not much really, just a dinner out at a restaurant of his choice.  My young man is getting old - a whopping 27 now!  His birthday was actually Wednesday, but as it is in the way of grownups, we put it off until a night when neither of us had to work the next day.  Which is why I am still up at ten o'clock at night!

Our dog Jaclyn has managed this neat trick at getting into the garbage without taking the lid off the can.  I'd really like to know how she's managed that, the sneaky little devil!  This of course means I can never ever turn my back on her, which can be rather tiring.  Tonight she managed to dump the entire thing on its side, so she's trapped in the computer room with Mr. Janney and I - she's not happy, but she'll get over it.  I may have to follow +Jacqueline Brown's advice and bleach the garbage.

I hear my washing machine spinning out, so I'd best be getting back to my chores.  At least through it in the dryer.  And then get to working on book two of my series so I can get that out soon!  My goal right now is to have it done and proofed by summer's end.  Before would be nicer.  But for some reason I have "summer's end" in my head.    Let's keep our finger's crossed!

2014 ~ A Year of Redefining

Random Thoughts About my Day

Last week when they told us we would be working five days, we all thought - the bosses included - that my department would be getting at least 40 hours.  Well, the harvest floor had a bad day and even though we'll still be working five days, we'll be lucky to get the same amount of hours we have been getting by shoving everything into four days.  But still, while the paychecks will suck, it is nice to have a couple of short days.  I mean, who doesn't like being home by lunchtime?

I've been home since a little after 12 noon, and haven't gotten much done really.  I walked the dog - and then put her back in the kennel since she can't stay out of the garbage while I run into the bathroom.  I'll let her out again shortly.  Made myself a warm lunch - as apposed to the cold cheese sandwiches I usually eat, I grilled them this time.  I didn't have any tomato soup to go with them, which was sad, but I found a can of stewed tomatoes and decided that it was close enough!  And then I moved the clothes from the dryer to the bed, the clothes in the washer to the dryer, and started a new load in the washer.

I blogged about TV, but I don't think I'll be watching any today.

And now I'm on the computer.  I checked to see if there were any comments on my post over at Broads of a Feather and replied to them like a good little blogger.  I've done a favor for my hubby - at least I hope it worked, he hasn't messaged me back yet.  I've checked my email, sent two quick replied with a promise to get back to them a little later this afternoon.  One involved converting a file to PDF so that my one Beta Reader will be able to make comments easier.

I have at least one phone call to make too, see if I can't get some help paying this winter's electric bill.  It is huge!  Sometimes there are too many bills, and too small of a payday, especially when you're not getting the work hours you're used to.  And I'm sure I can find a few other chores to attend to before getting down to writing.  I hate that, but some things just need to be done.  Dishes and laundry both reproduce while you're doing them and so they never get done.  Ever.

Now I have to turn my thoughts to the presentation Broads of a Feather will be doing April 5th at the library.  I'm excited, and daunted, all at once.  I'll give you more information the closer we get to the event.  :)  So on that happy thoughts, you all have a great afternoon!

2014 - One Day at a Time

Did You Feel The Earthquake Today at Noon?

Of course I just had to get that in there!

Ok, so there was no actual earthquake.

But it doesn't take a genius to grasp that today was an important meeting.

On a personal level. Because I really liked meeting Carol. She's pleasant and likable. Funny, and a fellow Trek fan!  (woot woot!)  She's definitely the leader of the two of us; whether that is my own insecurity speaking or an accurate fact I can't say for certain! Regardless, this is the start of something pretty awesome!

I hope her phaser is set on stun!

On a fun level.  Because like I said, she's just fun!  She brought Star trek toys for us to play with.  Hey, you're never too old to just have some fun!  Even in the library!  Of course, the librarian we were meeting with had to bust out her stern face and put us overgrown kids back on track.  Focus!  We had to focus! And afterwards when we went to the Mad Hatters Cafe and Co-Op for a coffee and Whoopie Pie - we somehow ended up participating in a Stress Management workshop!  I can't even begin to describe that except to say there were a lot of giggles and I could have sworn the presenter had been reading from my secret blog!

On a professional level.  Because our meeting at the Spaulding Memorial Library was to set up a joint presentation!  I'm so excited I can't even think straight to tell you the truth!  I'm not one hundred percent certain what Carol has in mind for our presentation, but since she's the more experienced author with more books released than myself, I'm more than willing to let her lead and just go with the flow.  We do have plenty of time to put our heads together again.  I'm sure it will be a blast since great minds think alike and we do seem to have a lot in common!  <<March 22nd, 1pm if you want to save the date>>  Don't worry, I won't let anyone forget - plus there will be a write up in the newspaper too!

Great minds really do think alike.

All in all it was a great experience.  One that I'm glad happened.  It was encouraging at a time when it was needed.  Of course now, I'll have to turn my focus back to the blog post I started for Broads of a Feather and get that posted so that we can do a collaborative post about midweek.  And then, who knows?  I might actually pull my voice memos out and get a few scenes written for the second novel in my series!  Of course, knowing my eternal sense of good timing - that will be about the time Mr. Janney decides it's time to call me for a ride home.  Maybe I should turn the ringer off????  Just for a bit?  I'm sure he won't mind.  Much.

Just kidding Mr. Janney.

Maybe. ;)

2014 ~ Back In Focus

Anticipating Tomorrow's Meeting of a Fellow Author

I'm giddy.

I'm excited and nervous.

Is that too much redundancy?

Just a short post tonight to share my excitement about meeting a fellow author, my cohort in Broads of A Feather.  I do not feel that I'm a very social person.  I mean, I'd rather stay home and read books and write my own stories.  But for some reason this past week, I sent Carol a message asking what she thought of the two of us meeting.  Obviously she thought it was a great idea.

And of course I'm a bit nervous.  I mean, I'm meeting a new person.  A virtual stranger!  Granted, we've been friends on Facebook for a while now and have chatted here and there.  But to meet her in person...ooooohhhhhhhh!!!!!  Inside I am jumping up and down!

I will of course be blogging about the actual meeting and our plans after the fact as well.  For now I'm going to keep this short, and I'm not going to post a picture like usual, because my computer is being extra cantankerous tonight.  (Maybe it's still feeling the cold?)



2014 ~ One Month Down!

Learning to Balancing Work, Home, and Hobby

I was not writing when I met my husband.

Nothing fictional, at least.  Just the random odd poem.  Which for me is nowhere near as consuming as fiction writing.  With poetry, I just poor out whatever it is I am feeling and it's done.  With fiction, it's world creating ~ It's intrigue and drama and romance ~ It draws me into my characters thoughts, emotions, dreams, and fears!  My characters are so real to me!

So when I downloaded my rough draft of Farmer's Daughter early last year and was totally consumed by it, he was - not surprised exactly, but it was something new to him.  While he supports me in my writing, I'm not sure it's something he completely understands.  You might understand me when I say 'consumed', especially if you're a fellow writer or reader.  But he's not and he always looks a little confused when I talk about it.  We've argued about how much time I spend on the computer a few times, and he always throws my own lines back at me about getting out and living life and not rotting on the Xbox.  Hmm, not sure they compare and I feel after ten years of writer's block I'm entitled to a break from "real life".

But I value my relationship with him, so I try to balance my time on the computer with the rest of life.  It's hard when he doesn't cooperate!

It shouldn't be hard: balancing work, home, and the hobby I'm trying to turn into a career.

I mean, yes, I work a full time job.  Only 40 hours during a good week, but we haven't really had too many of those since they consolidated the first and second shifts of my department.  45 hours has become our norm; although the cold weather gave us an unusually short week last week.  That translates into 9 hours days.  Like so many, I come home tired and not wanting to do anything.

Did I mention she was cute too???

Home is just my husband and I, and our hyper and attention loving dog Jaclyn.  I do the bulk of the chores, when I feel like it.  Mostly I just come home, walk the dog, eat my supper, and go on the computer.  Not that I always get much accomplished.  At least at this moment as I write this I only have to deal with his conversation over the Xbox and not his comedy channel on his Pandora radio app.  The comedy channel is like a TV show - it sucks me right in and I get distracted.  Sometimes because it's actually funny.  Other times the humor is just insolent and it makes me angry.

And now my author friend and I are undertaking our joint "Broads of a Feather" venture.  Which by the way, she put her post up today!  I will probably post on Thursday and drop posting here on that day.  I will make that decision for sure tomorrow and include it in tomorrow's post.  It will be exciting when we have more members to our group!  More writers to chat with, share ideas with, and just have fun together!

One way or another, I will learn this balancing act.  Even if it means quieting the hubby with duct tape or shutting off the power again. ;)  There are many things he could do to help me, but I'm afraid that as much as he 'supports' me - I'm on my own.  If I succeed, then great.  If not, oh well.

But see, I'm set on succeeding!  I'm set on proving every naysayer in my life wrong.  Because I know that I can do this.  I can see my dream become a reality, and become even more than I expected.  Because I'm a writer, I'm also a dreamer.

And I dream pretty big.

2014 - Full Speed Ahead!

Two Authors Join to Unite Indie Authors of NE PA Through "Broads of a Feather"

Birds of a feather flock together.  So do writers!

This morning I had a friend of mine message me on Facebook with an idea.  C. P. Stringham has this idea to join forces with a Facebook page named Broads of a Feather for local indie authors in northeast Pennsylvania where we live.  I liked that idea a lot, and while I was at work she got the ball rolling.

She also mentioned a blog and twitter account.  The Blog I just got done setting up, also named Broads of a Feather.  She would like us to each post to the blog once weekly, and promote it etc. and our writings and so on and so forth.  I'll probably not post on this blog on the same day that I post on that one, aside from today of course.

I still have a lot of work to do, connecting accounts, sharing links - and it's almost my bedtime and I haven't gotten a single word written in my story yet.  Which is regretful because I've had some ideas bouncing around in my head today at work.  I'll have to get to it tomorrow.

This was our temp at 2:15 when I got out of work.

On the bright side, we finally got all our water pipes thawed out.  For some reason the cold water side in the bathtub didn't want to thaw out, which put a damper on my plans to shower last night.  But tonight when I came home from work, and our heat wave of 19F didn't do the trick, I began to get a little worried.  How would we get to it?  What if a pipe had burst?

Thankfully not.

Apparently our hot water pipe runs close enough to the cold that just running the hot water while cleaning the tub for a bath was enough to loosen things up!  I feel sooooo much better now!

Off to finish a few tidbits up!



2014 ~ Full Speed Ahead