Thoughts on the New Year

Well,

I don't have too many thoughts because I am uber tired. Was up until midnight last night listening to my daughter cry. I felt so bad for her. She got into a mess of her own making, but in her innocence had no idea it would blow up the way it did. This older guy was being really nice to her (he's seventeen my dd is almost fifteen) the ice princess was flattered even though she knows he is going out with a friend of hers, a 20 year old superviser at the rink. (All rink people) Heck, I know he was flirting with her and she flirted back... she just recently discovered she has that power, you know? YOU KNOW! So he asked for her number and she gave it and later that night they text messaged back and forth a bit. I know because I was reading them. (My dd and I are tight) It was totally innocent. (Well, as innocent as it can be for a seventeen year old male, freaking pervs that they are)

And that was the end of it. Or so she thought. Last night she was running the DJ booth at the rink with her 20 year old friend and the friend was ranting about her boyfriend getting text messages from some girl (only she named another girl) The ice princess freaked out because she knew it was her. (How the supervisoer knew and what gave her the idea it was this other little girl, I have no clue) The ice princess called me in a panic because she didn't know what to do. Tell the truth. It's no big deal. HA! It turned out to be a big deal. The girl wasn't mad at ice princess she was mad at her boyfriend and flipped out on him. While ice princess was there. Crying. Sheese. The girl has some issues... why is she dating a seventeen year old in the first place. Poor dd. Being a homeschooled chicky she has never played those flirty games in school and watched the drama unfold. She was like OMG! I didn't mean to cause this!

Sigh. She is so almost fifteen... everything is bigger than the world. And she really doesn't want the truth that this too shall pass and isn't the most important thing EVER! So I am super tired. But she did give me a great idea for my next skate novel! LOL!

Anyway... on to the next year. Thoughts.

This will be the year that I sell! (thinking positive here) I honestly didn't think I would get Jenny Bent as an agent so that prooves that miracles can happen. Now I am thinking about my career as a whole. I want to put out the ice skating series. I want to do some YA time travel books. I want to write a couple of adult books... maybe a few cat books. Then a couple of Single titles books. And some anthologies.

Not all this year though:)

I'll save some for next year!

Is there anybody out there?

I guess the blogging world isn't the only one that slows down at this time of year. I have had a horrid time getting a hold of the experts who promised they would get my email questions back to me before the holidays. ARG! I have three articles due day after tomorrow and as it stands I can only do one today. The rest are waiting for people to get back to me!

And the one I do have all the info for is one I am really dreading. It's a medical and every paragraph will be hellish as I check and recheck all of my facts. Besides, I have a week till my agent gets back and I would really rather work on that. My WIP... cause as soon as the first one sells I want to WOW them by having another fabulous proposal ready to go:)

It is going pretty well... I am having trouble with the transition from the present to the past. I mean, she's freaked out, but I don't want her to spend the whole book scared. Yawn. And I have to introduce and establish a bunch of new characters. It's time for me to head to the End of the Oregon Trail Museum for research! I think I am going to ask one of my CP's to go with. Will be fun.

Festive Festive

What a blast!

Got books!

Am reading!

Merry Christmas!

What a wonderful Christmas Eve with the family. There were many lovely gifts, though less this year than last ... inflation is getting to everyone. But that didn't matter, we all made merry anyway and when the FIL passed out his checks (the gift that keeps on giving) everyone was VERY surprised by the number of 0's on the end. HO HO HO!

Now we must get the teens to head to bed so we can have our sips and wrap gifts together. it's traditional:)

What else is traditional? Well, I really hate tinsel on a Christmas tree so Santa always finished decorating our tree. he would put up the tinsel that is so messy and our kitties eat and also the candy canes our doggies would eat. So even the tree was different when my children come out to open their gifts in the morning. Even as teens, they look forward to it. Because I take my tree down on the 26th, there is less of a chance of our cats geting sick.

Also. Well, there is a very important inanimate object in our family called Scamper. He is a beaver. A very important beaver. Once he spent 3 weeks at the movie theater. Another time he spent two months at our church. Every year he gets a stocking all to his own and even though Scamper's mama is a lovely and poised almost 15-year old girl, she still asked tonight... "Did you remember to get stuff for Scamper's stocking?" Yes, baby we did. This year Scamper is the proud owner of a hershy bar (Which he will share with mama) and a Canadian Quarter.

Merry Christmas to all!

Thanks for the Felicitations!

I had a truly wonderful day. The US Posty was kind and brought me a big fat checky... I was able to buy what I needed for my dh and some festive alcoholic beverages. Gifts for friends... that sort of thing. Very nice.

My son bought me Sk8er Boy by Mari Mancusi. Remember I write YA and need to keep up on the market:) And also a bar of imported dark chocolate. My daughter cleaned the house instead of giving a gift... which as nice a gift as you can get and dh had already taken me to dinner at the macaroni grill. All in all a good day!

Happy Birthday to Me!

YAY for me! I am offically old!

Plan on spending the day shopping and sleeping and eating nummy things!

Tired

How many phrases and words can we think of for I'm tired? You can relate? Yeah. Me too.

I'm bushed
I'm beat
I'm whacked
I'm hammered
I'm exhausted
I'm numb
I'm drowsey
I'm sleepy

Thinking of craft

I have some great CP's. They not only tell me (in detail) what is wrong with my writing but they tell me how to fix it. We just finished having a discussion on deep POVand what it means. Since I have finally decided to go third with my WIP, they told me to go deep. Add sensory elements to fix the reader firmly in the characters head. One of them found a great link to show the difference between deep POV and shallow or limited POV. Check it out... it was a lightbulb going off in my head. I think one of my daily exercises before I begin writing will be to read this:)
I even made my husband read it in case he thought that what I do is ridiculously easy. HA!

One of the things my agent told me was that I am a natural at dialogue. About seven years ago I wrote a YA book. It was pretty bad, but one of the things my writer friend told me was that my dialogue rocked it. It was everything else that needed help. Part of me wonders where I would be if I hadn't stopped writing fiction to working at nonfiction, but on the other hand, I think it was a good training ground. And even my dialogue takes work to make it sound not just natural, but naturally teen-like, as well. Before I send my chapter in for a crit I will go over my dialogue and ask myself, is it young? Does it sparkle? Trust me, my cp's let me know if it's not. I think that's what second and third drafts are for... adding the sparkle.

Sometimes in order to do that(add the sparkle) you need to kill your darlings because sometimes those are the very passages that keep you from thinking of the big thing, the thing that will make the difference between a scene that works and one that doesn't. I think of them as concrete... they keep my mind focused in the mud and won't let it free to entertain other ideas. My prologue was a perfect example. My CP's didn't really like it even though they thought it added a lot of tension to the plot of the book. My agent felt the same way... you may remember me sweating over the prologue last week. In my desperation to come up with something that worked, I threw out all the rest of my preconceived ideas of what it should be. Only in letting it go was I able to come up with something completely new and fresh. Something that sparkled.

So what will the week bring? I dunno. Probably not a sale, though a woman on a list made a sale last week. YA. The market is definetly out there. But I am looking forward to the New Year. After last weeks pitch it was sent to ten interested editors. I think that is one of the perks for having a big name agent. You have editors dropping stuff to listen to them and read what they have to offer. No doubt it is because they offer quality. Hee. I like the sound of that. Someone thinks my stuff is quality! Will keep you updated!

Dilemma

I spent all day Thursday working on my WIP and switching it from third to first. Now I am not so sure it's what I want. I wanted first person past, but my tenses were all over the place and I thought maybe I should just go back to what I know. But... I am not sure. Should I ask my agent and her assistant to read a couple of pages of each and see what they think? After all, this will no doubt be the next thing they rep for me after my series sells. I am so uncertain here.

I really felt her voice strongly when I was finishing up with On the Edge. Then she got shy on me. No, I mean really... her shyness became a part of the book. I even wrote a synopsis for her a couple of months ago and the girl wasn't shy then! But... I really don't plan on having another POV in the story. So maybe I should just go with first person.
I wish I had a clear path with this one.

May have to hit up additional friends with this one.

Be-otch, You Fat!

And how did this happen?

Last year I took off about forty five pounds and was in striking distance of goal weight. But last spring something snapped in me and I started on a seven month eating binge that leaves me 60 pounds overweight and totally demoralized. Honestly, it was about the time I got the regional magazine position, started writing fiction in earnest and got a promotion to contributing editor with a national magazine. At the time I contributed it to stress. But wait. There's a pattern. I started sending out queries and with every request for a partial I ate more. The requests for fulls had me stuffing those candybar cookies (Who the hell thought up those things?) into my mouth at unbelievable rate.

It isn't stress. I am afraid of success. Someone said on her blog the other day that fear of success was really just fear of failure, because the higher you get the harder you fall.

I am far too driven to ever stop trying to succeed, so I eat to mask the fear. How insecure is that, eh?

So I guess I will join the rest of the US and hit the gym in January. I know how to do it, I've done it before. I just don't know how I will find the time, but I think I am gonna have to get a handle on this. After all, I am going to soon have to have the stamina and energy for all those book tours, yes? Not to mention publicity photos. Though I think that my book will be one of those without the author picture!

Snort!

Talk about productive!

Nerves must make me produce, because I wrote an article, sent out a bunch of emails for my next three articles, critiqued three chapters for one of my Cp's and typed up the Christmas letter.

I should get some kind of award!

I also managed to straighten up the house once, though that is kind of moot now. Of course, you don't see me writing that I worked on Colorless today! Now I have a bunch of running around to do.

I also got a partial list of who they sent a copy of the book out too, but I don't think I will share that now. I will just wait till I get an offer:)

Wish I were more interesting and witty...mind is just too full of other things!

And All is Well

Sigh of relief here. They lurved the prologue. Thought it was smashing. They are sending out the manuscript today. Will send me list of editors when they are done.

So excited.

Now rationally I know it may be weeks or even months. The other part of me (the part that was in hiding yesterday) believes editors are going to be fighting for it. It is a series after all, and for all they know I may be the next Meg Cabot. Which I have every intention of becoming, so hey. Am plotting my next career move as we speak. I have many good ideas and am working on my next proposal. Of course, it all depends on this first series selling.

I fell asleep thinking about my next series. Trying to plot it. Figure out how the series is going to be connected. I am thinking it should all be connected by the neighborhood. An odd little neighborhood shaped like a wagon wheel, though from the air it is more like a star. Not sure though. It's a paranormalseries and all Time travel...that much I do know.

I have the first book plotted and I am working on it, though I am going to have to change it from first person to third. One of my Cp's likes it in first, but I am having a horrible time with the tenses, so I'm takin the easy way and going back to third.

So send a little prayer out with my manuscripts. What a wonderful Christmas present that would be, eh?

Insecurities

Oh, Lord do I have em.

Just when I thought I was safe from them, I find myself wondering when my agent is going to realize that she made a mistake.

I got the the rewritten prologue back and they didn't care for it. Said the tone was too different from the book. I could toally see that and rewrote it and sent it back... the tone matches the book and really raises the tension. It is now almost 2:00 their time and I have heard nothing. Nothing. They were supposed to be sending it out today. What if she hates it. What if she decided the book sucks and is trying to figure out away to rescind her decision?

Oh God, that's it, right?

See, I told you I had them.

The pit in my stomach is down to my feet and I am ready to go back to bed and pull the covers over my head.

Productive day

Finished up everything I needed to for the proposal except my bio. I am not sure how to go about that. I relied on my excellent Cp's for help today and as always they came through with some good feedback. I also managed to send out some interviews and organize my articles. Not too bad.

Have to write up two articles tomorrow, get the newsletters printed out and addressed and get megan to the rink for the holiday show. She has a lesson in the morning, and then my son has to work too. Guess who will be doing his school work on Saturday. The life of a mom is amazing.

Speaking of Amazing... my husband is amazing. He called and said that he knew I was under the wire and told me that he would do whatever it took to keep me at the computer so I could work. What a doll! This form a man who used to hate me pecking away!

Boy how things change, eh?

Just a tiny nervous breakdown... really.

I felt just a wee bit overwhelmed last night. Wednesdays are like that for me. So much driving. So little working.

My agent (I still get a little thrill when I say that) my agent, my agent, my agent. Ahem) would like to start sending out submissions next week. That means I have to get the revisions finished, write a synopsis for book two in the series, change the current synopsis to reflect the change and get a bio together.

I also have two articles due, interviews to conduct and an unholy schedule to keep for my children. Oh, and I have to make sure they get their school work done. Not to mention Christmas. Oh, did I mention Christmas? SHHHHH!

The skate club newsletter needs to go out and I have two proposals to get together before the new board meeting.

I have the holiday skate show on Friday, a party afterwards, my RWA Holiday party on Saturday and we have to get the tree on Sunday. (I didn't say the C word!)

OH and did I mention the 50 pounds I have to lose before Atlanta? Sheese how did that happen? I took off forty last year and ran two and a half miles. then I gained fifty and got shinsplints.

Okay, if I don't stop I am going to have another mini nervous breakdown now.

So what does it all mean?

I woke up this morning and wondered what it was all about. Not the headache. I am pretty sure that was due to the margaritas I inbibed at the Mexican restaurant. Family took me out to celebrate and then we listen to and sang, "Beverly Hills, That's where I want to be.e.e, all the way home."

But what does it mean now that I am agented? I have extra input on my book. I have someone who is actively selling the book. That's good! Someone to help me make decisions on my career? I hope so. Someone with more knowledge on my side in the publishing world. That counts for a lot. But honestly, in my day to day life, I still have 14 assignments waiting to be done, another novel to work on, critiquing to do for my Cp's and work to do for the magazine. Do I feel more professional? More... Acknowledged? No, that's not it. Affirmed? Yeah, that's it. I feel like my dream of writing fiction has finally been affirmed. Not that I am more of a writer than I was yesterday... It just helps that three talented agents all told me I was good and wanted the privilege of selling my work. It just does.

So now that I have stopped crying and cheering and doing the happy dance, I guess I will have to get back to it and write.

It's Official

I signed today with Jenny Bent from Trident Media.


Can't even begin to express my joy and thankfulness. Am so excited about the future! She asked for a small change to the beginning of the book, but other than that.... WOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Time keeps on slipping slipping slipping...

Into the future.

Tick tock tick

doo doo do doo

Now can anyone tell me who said that?

And the waiting begins

I can't believe that my career will change in just the next few days. Not sure what is going to happen yet, but I am excited for it to begin. Usually things happen so quickly you don't really have a chance to think about it. It is odd standing upon the precipice watching things happen.

I am glad I will be gone most of the day at the figure skating test for my daughter. It's at our rink so I have to be there. She is nervous. She is afraid of passing because it's a big test and she doesn't know if she is ready for the level she will be going into. (Boy, do I know how that feels) I know she's ready and her coach knows she's ready, but she doesn't. She does know that no matter what, we will love her and it will be okay.

As for me, I do know that I am excited to get on with it. To go to the next level and then the next level. In spite of my own fear that I'm not ready for it. Like my daughter, I know that I am not alone. I have some good friends and six CPs who are totally responsible for me getting to this point.

Right now, I'm happy observing. For the first time in a long time, the waiting isn't driving me nuts.

Have to Chuckle

About how many agents are reading ON THE EDGE this weekend.

I couldn't get anything but the occasional R for the last three months and now I have people wanting fulls left and right. Talk about psychology. One agent wants it and the book suddenly becomes more valuable in the eyes of the others. Think of the gulls on Finding Nemo. Me. me. me. me. me.

Of course, I have only had one offer and I am pretty pleased with her. We'll see.

Must dash.

BIG THINGS

Are afoot.

I got an offer of representation today. Not from the same big unnamed agent who asked for a full yesterday. Someone else. Someone that I already feel a connection with. had a nice conversation with her today. I contacted the agent from yesterday and several others who had fulls. I should know by next week who I am going with. It never rains but it pours, eh? I know, cliche, but apt.

Spent all day on the phone. Have a dozen articles due this month, but they will have to wait. Today is for joy. Drugged and happy joy. Am so excited and happy.

Real thankful too.

big things?

Might be afoot.

We'll see. But I have a much shorter wait time. Suffice it to say tht some big named unamed agent wanted an exclusive full. When I replied that I couldn't give that to her she said fine, just let me know if someone offers representation so I can have a chance and by the way I will let you know by the end of next week.

So if it's a yes. (And Lord, I hope it's a yes) Then I will have to make a hard decision on who I want and let the others know. Of course if she says no, I will cry a bit and go on waiting. But the adreneline was worth it.

Oh, I took off my shirt last night and tweaked my shoulder. How tweaked? Enough to take me to urgent care for painkillers. They have no idea how it happened. Probably pinched a nerve. Welcome to the forties.

LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Thanks!

Thanks for all your support. Waiting is a part of the game, which doesn't make it any easier! And I am truly ditheringly happy for all of my friends who have had the call in recent weeks. I just want it too:)

I am done with articles for the month and hope to get to some serious critting and writing. I have a bit more research to do. I need to take a trip to The End of the Oregon Trail museum. My family loves that place so it's not a problem. Need to get on with it though, I tell you!

Right now I am just tired. Had a horrid fight with Dh last night. Probably should have avoided it, but it was one of those cleansing fights that left us both bruised, but refreshed (I didn't mean physcially!) Just an airing out type of fight. Then I had to run and get the kids from the rink... we have an extra one, a skater friend of Megs whose mum is in Vegas on business and needs rides to the rink. That's fine, but they stayed up too late talking last night and no doubt will skate like crap this morning. I will probably get it from both of their coaches when I go to pick them up.

I am hoping for a nap, but I don't think I will get it.

The Call

So what does the call feel like?

Cause I am ready to find out. My friends are getting the call. So exciting. Several have been signed in the last week. I'm still waiting. Always on the verge of something. Just enough to keep me going. Keep me writing and hoping.

Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I had kept writing YA when I started to six, almost seven years ago. My first novel was a YA. It pretty much sucked. And I went with what I could to make money. So now I am making money, but I am behind the eightball as far as my fiction career is going. How come I always feel behind? Like everything good will be done by the time I am ready for it. I feel like all the agents are going to shut their gates just before I get there. Or that all the big publishing houses are going to fold before I even get an agent.

Then there is the other fear. The one that haunts all writers at one time or another. What if I am just not that good?

Post Thanksgiving Post

Ate too much, but I did resist the urge to go shopping this morning. Actually it wasn't much of and urge. More of a yearn. But after two days of festive hot buttered rums, doctored eggnog and irish cream in coffee, I am not much feeling like running about.

I finished this years Christmas letter which is as snarky as ever. I try to give people something entertaining to read and the response has been wonderful. I think I'm going to make some lables that say warning: Not your grandmother's Christmas letter, so I can stick it on the outside of the envelope.

Camne home last night and wrote up four pages of chapter two. I would like to finish it today, but my neice is spending the weekend so I'm not sure how well that's going to go. The paranormal aspect is growing a bit deeper and I had to rewrite some things in the first chapter to go with the flow. I like it though... lends it more plot depth than it had before. Pretty cool.

Speaking of which... I wanna go write:)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a Wonderful Holiday Everyone!

Another Big R

An R on a Sunday?

I guess so. Amazingly enough, I wasn't upset. And it was an agent I really wanted too!

But I finally was into Colorless when it came. The chapter was rolling along well except I didn't have a chapter hook. And then when it did... it was so unexpected and so fantastic! I couldn't believe it. It added new depth and an unexpected twist to the story. I am going to go over the chapter a few times before handing it over to my cps to rip up, but right now, I'm pretty happy with it. Very, very excited.

So the rough of chapter one is fini. I am really and truly started. And that agent is going to be regretful that she didn't sign me when she had a chance;-)

Top O The Morning To You!

Yes, I am channelling my Irish roots.

My silly cat woke me in the wee hours, but for some reason I am feeling pretty good. After a hideous day yesterday... (is there anything worse than having printer issues when you are trying to get out a manuscript?) I am looking for a good day today. I have some stuff to crit for my CP group, an article to write and then I am going to start in earnest on my new novel. It's only going to be about 45 thousand words... if I work on it I can finish it by mid January and then start on the romances that I have ratteling around in my brain. Unless, of course, I get a contract and need to start on another skate novel at that time.

Speaking of which... the first line in OTE is, "Hey Cassie! Watching you skate gives me a zamboni!"

The next book will start out with, " Okay girls, let's get out there and kick some ice." Pretty good, eh? Except someone said it to me the other day and I forgot to ask her where she got it... I should do that first:)

Well, another week went by and I heard nothing from anyone. Well, I can't say that because I did get another request for a full and a partial. And then I sent out another partial. I made up a new timeline too. I am pretty pleased with the agents that are itnerested right now. After getting an R from my dream agent, I just got a new dream agent. Everything is relative, eh?

Okay... must hop up and clean the house before starting in on my writing day. Must keep the dh happy!

End of the week

Do I feel caught up? Not really?

The GH Contest looms over me, though I do have all the changes made that I want to have. I have the disk with the full made and properly labled and all I have to do is print out six copies of the partial and six of the synopsis. Then buy a box and send the sucker out.

I also have three articles that I need to have done by the end of next week. And that includes Thanks giving.

Things are going on at the magazine. Not sure what. I know that the office Goddess left and the boss needs to get a new one. I wish it were time to start an office up hear. Or maybe I'm not, maybe I am supposed to be waiting on an agent. Just like with that job... you have to sense which direction your life should be going. Sort of feel your way.

With all the GH stuff, I haven't hardly even started Colorless. I would love to get that one done by the end of the year. I would really like to have the proposal done now so if an agent asks if I have anything else I would have it there to show them.

How do you juggle writing with everything else? I just keep wondering. Last night i had some time to write, but was so tired I ended up playing frog frenzy. What a time waster! I know I need to be more efficient, but I am not sure I have the discipline:)

I'm not dead

Sorry to have disappeared for so long. I spent most of last week getting ready for son's sixteenth birthday bash in Seattle and then yesterday and today recovering. had much fun, the seahawks won and we got to do the whole Pikes Street market thing. Too cool.

Today, I had a gazillion and one things to do including articles on this that and the other. I also got a request for a full from an agent I would love to have, who had actually read the proposal and liked it enough to want more:) That, my friends, feels good. I am hoping to have an agent by the holidays:) Also got another request for a partial.

Now to get my GH entry ready to go. I have been working on it and have tried to help my CP's get there's ready to go as well. We agreed that next year we would start earlier... not that any of us will be eligible next year cause we will all be published authors and all! Hee.

Tomorrow I have tons more nonfiction work to do. Am going to try to get to some blogs before I hop off to watch TV and head to bed.

Plotting!

Okay, I did it.

I just finished plotting out all twelve chapters of Colorless. I think nine and ten are a little weak, but I think by that time I get there I will have some new ideas. I will have to do a lot more research for this one, but I am excited to get started. She doesn't actually do the time travel part until the end of chapter two so I can get the first couple of chapters going before I really have to decide where she is on the Oregon Trail, exactly how many families are on the wagon train, which famous characters they meet on the way and exactly what year it is. Because I live in Oregon and have been to the End of the Oregon City Museum many times, that part of the research won't be too hard... I actually have access to covered wagons, the supplies they needed, the clothes they wore, etc.

I am so excited! I think this might end up being my best novel yet, though I don't want to take anything away from On the Edge. It is the best I have yet done, but we are supposed to improve with each one, right? I love starting a new book. All the possibilities! It's ahead of me. Like starting a new adventure and even though I have plotted it out, there is so much I don't know yet.

Now I just have to catch up on my nonfiction stuff. Yikes!

Golden Heart

I did it, I entered the Golden Heart Contest!

Am busy revising my already revised synopsis. It is even better than before! Will send my six fifty page proposals and one disk with the full in it and hope I final. If I final I will get to go to Nationals, no questions asked. I don't expect to, but it would be nice:)

Must run!

Thanksgiving Angst

I don't want to go to my in-laws for Thanksgiving. That's not as bad as it sounds.

When I was 23 I went to their house for Christmas for the very first time. It was just before my dh and I were leaving for Reno to get married. It was magical. My dh has four siblings and two of them had little ones. They had many traditions that had to be adhered to and were done with huge amounts of humor such as slapping the turkey before it went in the oven. Dh's dad handed out all the gifts and their was much froliking, dancing about and noise. My Mil hustled and bustled and created fabulous feasts and everyone else just cavorted. So different from my own quiet childhood Christmas'. I have been to Turkey day at their home and it was just as much of a riot as were the monthly birthday get togethers. As time went on, in fairness to my family, we began spending Turkey day with them and Christmas with my dh's family. Then I started doing Thanksgiving on my own every once in a while.

Now my beloved MIL is gone. Beloved doesn't even begin to describe how much I miss her and think of her everyday. She was my mentor and my sensei. Last Christmas was the hardest. But we got through it and will get through it again. I just don't want to go for Thanksgiving. Too much sadness altogether for the holidays. I wanted to go see Finding Nemo on Ice or SOMETHING else. But Dh didn't get it and now we have to go. My own parents are in AZ for tehe winter so I have no excuse.

I am a bit torqued.

Am still trying to figure out a nice way toduck out of it. My fav radio station is giving away tickets to Finding Nemo... if I can get a hold of a fourpack of those for Turkey day... then YAY!

Send good thoughts.

Have a drink on me!

I finished editing and polishing On the Edge today. I am going to let it sit before I go over it one more time. I am afraid to look at it any more cause I think I will find things to change and tinker with. Am sending out tomorrow to agent who wants the full.

But better yet, I get to start on my next novel. Colorless. First person past. A time travel YA. Am excited about it. (sip) Am celebrating. (Sip)

Oh, oh, oh! I'm in the December issue of Writer's Digest, baby! I wrote an article called Class Act... and it's in there:) Funny cause they rejected a query the same day I got my magazine by Fed Ex! Too cool! (sip)

Am drinking the most nummy new drink. Coconut rum, orange juice and cranberry juice on the rocks. (sip) Is most delish.

Okay. Must run. Might start book tonight.

(Sip)

No NANO allowed

I seriously thought about doing Nanowrimo this year. For those who don't know, it is when a bunch of looky writers try to do 50,000 words in 30 days. NOw for those prolific types like Gena Showalter, that isn't a stretch. For the rest of us it's crazy. But fun. I've done it.

But no. I thought that juggling three "jobs" not including mothering and taxi driver was enough and I should leave the nanoing to others. I sort of wanted to because I have a 50,000 word novel I need to get into, but I have to finish polishing this one. I have an agent waiting for a full. So not this year. Good luck everyone.

In other news, I have received 3 more R's from the agents a followed up with. I didn't hear anything about the query from them and I figured the least they could do was send a form R. Takes seconds:) One of them did want the full ASAP, so following up is a good thing.

Okay. Off to do some critiqing for my cp's and get my dd to the rink and my son to the zoo. Busy drive day, weds are.

Party Hardy

Ahhh how times have changed.

I try not to think about the parties I attended when I was fifteen and sixteen and the parties I throw for my kids and their friends. The parties I attended often include pot and alcohol and guys. But for my kids everything is different. I am the cool mom on the block that throws parties for every season and every reason. Last night's Halloween party was no exception.

HOW TO THROW AN AWESOME PARTY FOR TEENS

1. Let everyone's parents drop them off early. Might be a headache to you, but look at it this way, you are giving the young men the all important opportunity to increase their x-box skills and teaching the girls how to throw a party. I know, I know, why can't the boys learn how to throw a party? Trust me, you don't want them in the livingroom and kitchen. Teen age boys are generally big and loud and do a lot of shoving and crude body language, real or otherwise. Girls squeal, giggle, dance and wash their hands.

2.Decorate profusly. This includes: lights strung everywhere, decorative lanterns, sparkly confetti strewn on the tables, floor and furniture and cool matching paper products. They may act like they are too old for it, but they actually love it. Makes them feel important, like someone went to a lot of trouble for them. Because our house is so small and our garage is packed full of stuff we actaully create a room in the garage with blankets, rugs and cushions. Decorate it with lights, disco balls, and a fog machine and you instantly have a room kids feel comfortable in. This year we hooked up several TVs and the guys had an x-box LAN room. Fun stuff.

3. Prepare lots of food and have the ones that came early help you. Last night we had several pounds of Hallowenies (A total teen favorite, little smokie sausages wrapped up in bits of pillsbury biscuits.) A couple of pounds of buffalo wings, decorated cupcakes, apples and caramel dip, cookies, taquitos and chips and dip. You can never really have too much food.

4. Invite some utterly cool young adults to help supervise. Last year we asked a young figure skating coach and her boyfriend to attend. They both wore the right clothes, were great too look at and fit right in. This year, I invited the new youth pastor and his wife. They are in their early twenties and of course, get along smashingly with kids. People like this help a lot with behavior because it makes the kids act a bit more mature. Hard to explain, but it works.

5. Games. Another thing they pretend to disdain, but if you have some good ones it gives the evening some structure. I generally mix up the time between free time and game time. I search for games that make everyone feel comfortable and make them laugh. Last night we played a funny game called, Find Bill. Find Bill is my own invention and is a smash hit every time. We have a little stuffed Bill Walton and one person hides him while everyone else is in a different room. He has to have one thing in clear view. When you find him, you quietly go and sit down. The first person to find him gets to hide him unless they have already hid him, then the next person gets a turn. Much hilarity ensues. Regulars to our parties get all excited when I bring out Bill. Other games include having the girls make PP&J with their feet and having the guys eat the sandwich, electricity and find the ring in the flour. Basically, anything icky and gross is good.

That's pretty much it. The kids get a great party and I get to know all their friends. I also provide an alternative to parties with drugs, alcohol and sex. I am not only a cool mama, I am a smart mama:)

A post on the fly....

Just wanted to tell everyone how much fun I am having with revisions. No doubt this love affair with them will stop once it is sold and I get a huge letter full of them from my editor, but right now, I am having fun!

Of course, having received a request for a full might have something to do with it! I went over the queries to agents I hadn't heard back from... of course, I changed the query to reflect that the book is now done. Anyway, one of the agents wants the full, so I guess I will have to finish the edits up:)

So edits, 3 articles and a possible job. Sounds like a full week. I will go into my folly of scheduling two back to back dinner parties on the same weekend later. YIKES!

Rolling right along

Finished two articles this week already. I have two more that are ready to go and have to get info for at least three more for next week. Am busy busy as usual.

Took the young man to a department store last night for some volunteer training. Today is Charity Day at Myier and Frank and his youth council is a part of it. I have some fabulous coupons and plan on getting some Christmas Shopping done. I scoped it out last night and found some goodies. I wish I knew whether I were getting that job or not. I could use some to get some working clothes. Me thinks my current working clothes(sweats, jeans or t-shirts) aren't going to cut it if I have to go to the office!

Speaking of which... I am sitting here thinking about that job. I mean, on one hand, what an opportunity... it is well done, beautifully designed and leans slightly to the right... sort of a rebellious, conservative attitude. Kinda like me. I would learn so much about putting a magazine together. It would look fabulous on my resume. It's fifteen minutes from my house. The money would be wonderful.

On the other hand... I would be terrified to get the job. I haven't worked in an office in sixteen years. I have only been freelancing "full time" for the last four or five. And you know how freelance is. I make my own hours. I am home to help the kids with their school work. We take off when we want to. I don't have to look any certain way and sometimes if I am on deadline and don't have to go to the rink, I sit in my robe until 11. I make decent money for a freelancer, though it does come in the most maddening waves and you can never count on it getting here...

So I think I will be okay either way. Of course, my husband... Snort. That's a whole different story. He has his eyes on the money and I can't blame him. He is a very type A, OCD, methodical kind of guy. Money coming, "I don't know when" makes him nuts.

Okay...more work. I might even take a look at Rink Rats today see where I need to revise it.

The light at the end of the tunnel

I didn't cough as hard last night and I actually got several bursts of energy yesterday. Perhaps this is a harbinger of better things to come.

I had my interview on Friday. It was for an assistant editor job at a classy little business/lifestyle magazine here in the Northwest. The office was small and sunny. There's six people on staff full time. Two editors, two sales people, and one office Goddess. And hopefully me. The editor seemed very impressed with my credentials and my clips. I would basically be a jack of all trades... Doing a little of everything and basically assisting the editors. It's located about 15 minutes from my house. Only problem ... it's full time. But I talked to the family and the money would be so worth it for us. And it is a dream job in my field...something I have always wanted to do.

So where does that leave my fiction? Well, most likely I would have to work a bit harder to find time for it... or maybe not. I do a lot of nonfiction stuff as it is. Maybe I would actually have more time if I left my job behind at the end of the day. Snort. The kids would have a hard time adjusting... I have been home with them since they were born and my son is almost sixteen. Hell, I would have a hard time adjusting! I love being with them. It's one of the reasons why I still homeschool them. We really like hanging out together. But... this could be an amazing opportunity.

Anyway... I won't know about the job until next week. If it's not meant to be, it's not meant to be. If it is? then I will tackle that when I come to it.

The longest cold ever

This one is a doozy and it incorporates every cold symptom known to man. Three days of exhustion and headaches, two days of body aches and agonizing throat pain and ear aches, followed up by three days, (so far) of phlegmy hacking. My son, the first one to catch this monster, is finally over it but it took almost two weeks! And weird... I had one day without the throat pain and then last night it was back.

But of course, my life doesn't stop because I'm sick. I polished off three more articles this week and as a reward picked up three more assignments. Then I got a check yesterday, no, excuse me, that was two checks. In the same envelope. Yesterday was a blur of running the kids around to various functions. Today my son, bless his peaked little head, called in at the zoo so we don't have to run up there... he heard his mommy hacking and knowing that I already have to run the NW woman tiara club meeting this afternoon, took pity. I am also going to be on a panel tonight at our local library. It's a panel on homeschooling teenagers. Probably would be more fun if I wern't so snuffly. And Ethan works and my daughter has to ice skate... the fun just never ends! La Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

Haven't had a chance to look at my story yet. Don't want to. Hee. One thing at a time. Haven't heard from an agent or the editor yet. I am still on pins and needles with that one! Okay, must run.

No rest for the weary

Not that I expected any. My non fiction career must take center stage as a dozen articles and projects become due in the next two weeks. An opportunity may have arisen that I am considering though that may take even more time away from my fiction writing...but would free me up from most of my other nonfiction duties. I say may have because I have no idea if I am even remotely right for the job.... and it would take me away from the direction I thought I was supposed to go. I will know more after the interview this week.


Am still suffering from cold, but am getting better so that's a plus.

I played with my next YA novel yesterday. I know, I know, I should wait a bit as I still need to revise the other one, but it was fun. This one will be written in 1st person past as the chacters voice has already been assimilated within me. My last one was third person which turned out to be the right choice. This isn't the next one in the Rink rats series... I will wait to write another one to see if it's even wanted, eh? I have too many other characters trying to get out!

Okay must run. Have an article on the affects of sugar on infant teeth and another one on kite flying due in the next two days. Ta!

FINI!

I am done!

Completely finished. Okay that was stupid. I know it is not done. I have revisions and editing to do. But right now, I will bask in the moment of finishing the first draft:)

WOOHOO!

The Final Chapter

YEAH!

I am on the last chapter baby and as such I am sitting here going, crap, I sure have a lot to resolve and that is after I finish writing the double climaxes. (Hee, I said double climax)

So I probably won't be blogging much until I get this done. Cause the two weeks after that are filled with a ton of nonfiction articles that are due.

Have a good weekend all and wish me luck!

Hump Day

I have found that Hump Days are generally more frantic than even Mondays. My daughter works on Weds nights, youth council meets every other Weds and youth group is every Weds. We run from one place to another generally grabbing food out somewhere and eating in the car on our way to the next place. Zoo is on Weds morning and the ice princess has a lesson on Weds which really starts out the day hot.

I am glad my children are so involved, I am. I never wanted my children to have to wait till they were 18 to do something meaningful with their lives. I feel like that is what I did as a kid. Wait till the school day was over. Wait till the weekend was there. Wait till summer vacation. Wait till I graduated. One of the reasons I homeschooled my kids is because I didn't want school to be their whole life. Some people, for one reason or another, will never see the graduation day they waited so longingly for. Waited too long to start their real life. Now there are kids who seem to be able to juggle a meaningful life(volunteer work, clubs, job) with the rigors of school and still learn what they need to learn, but I was not one of those kids. Neither is my messy, disorganized son. My driven daughter probably could. I know one lovely 17-year-old ice skater who skates, holds down two jobs and still does AP classes. She is wired that way. Many people are not. They are the ones who may fail classes and day dream during the time they should be organizing their calendar. They are the ones that need more time to mature. Should they be penalized for not being mini adults? Or should they be taught that they can do meaningful work they are passionate about right now. Passion often motivates. For some kids, school does not create passion and does not motivate. That's why I homeschool. I figured the odds were good that I would have one like me.

I didn't mean to get started, I really didn't. I meant to say that I am glad my kids are so involved but sometimes it is a major PIA!

Ha!

I got three assignments in the last couple of days and tons of magazine work to do. Also... I did eight pages on the novel yesterday! So close to being done!

Monday already?

Where did the weekend go?

Let's see.

Friday:Ice rink, home/work, ice rink, Laundromat, home/work, ice rink, home/work, ice rink, out to dinner, homecoming game, home.

Sat: 400 mile round trip to parents, clean/unpack parents home, drive home, friend forgot son so I have to run to rink, home.

Sunday: church, college fair, home, paint trim.

Oh, that's what happened. Hee.


College fair was fun... got lots of good info.

This week is very busy... kids are still sick, or sick with another cold, so I get the joy of waiting for that to hit too.

But on the upside. At least I have work to do. So why am I complaining? I make decent money writing, which is a dream.. so I shouldn't ever complain! Except maybe about the waiting. So. Okay. No more complaining.

Must start compiling my to do list for the week!

Things that really annoy me

1. When you wake up to the horrible sound of your dog getting ready to yak... and realize he's under your covers.

2.When you realize your heroine's name is spelled with an ie not a y and you have been mixing them up... for the last 200 pages.

3. When your husband comes home from work at 4 am and you realize that not only are you not going to be able to sleep again, but you have a 400 round trip ahead of you that day.

4. When the same man who just destroyed your sleep wants to get frisky with you.

5.When you go to a highschool football game, sit on a hard little bench that makes your legs go to sleep, drink really horrible coffee, have your finger stepped on my a highschool kid oogling your daughter, practically die of mind numbing boredom and then hear the blessed bell ring... only to realize that you have to do that three more times before you can go home.

6. When you fill up on bbq pork and fried won ton and you spent the money on your entree for nothing because you couldn't possibly eat it.

7.Waiting for agents and editors to get back to you. (You knew that was coming, didn't you?")

Stress with a capital S

My dog peed on the comforters which means an unplanned trip to the Laundromat. No way can I fit both comforters into my little washer so there you go. Not that he's a bad dog. He just hates going outside in the rain to go to the bathroom. We go the entire summer without an accident and as soon as the rains arrive puddles and nuggets start showing up. Can't really blame him. Would you like going out into the wet darkness to do your business? Problem is I live in Oregon, where it rains eight months out of the year.

But it does add one more thing to my to do list.

Like my son's computer. The semi new laptop I bought at budget computers. There's a no brainer. I should have seen that one coming. Now I have to take it back to a polace that never refunds. They always just fix it. Wonderful. But I have to go anyway. My daughter's lost the number 3 key.

Then my mom called asking for help this weekend. They are old and I don't mind going. But. This weekend was already packed to the gills. It's homecoming here so my kids are going to the parade and game tonight. A friend is spending the night. I drop the girls off to skate in the morning. My son works tomorrow night as does my husband, so logistically I had to find someone to bring the boy home from work. Sunday is Church and then a college fair downtown.

But I will make time. I am ever the good daughter and they need my help.

But I haven't written at all on the novel. And this is the week I wanted to finish it!

So much for that, eh? I'm not going to Stress about it. I have enough to Stress about.

No time for a fine wine?

Remember those commercials? We'll sell no wine before it's time. I can't even remember what wine it was except that it was one of the cheaper, yuckier wines. The best wine commercial was for the new (then) wine coolers with the two old guys and one always said, "Thank you for your support." (that has now become one f the catch phrases of my marriage)I actually knew that one. The one who spoke. He lived down the road from me in a place called Alfalfa, Oregon. I once sold his wife Avon back in my very brief two month career as an Avon lady. I was 18, give me a break. I gave it up. Too many dog bites. They lived in this old house, but after the commercials he had it torn down and built his wife a new one.

Anyway. The reason I got on the subject of wine, besides the fact that two of my cyber critique partners were inbibing last night, is that I haven't wrote on my novel at all this week. Like the fine wine, is it getting better or is it actually stagnating from lack of care?

I would be working on it right now, but I am sitting at the ice rink on one of the coach's computers waiting for my daughter's lesson to be over so I can go home and work on an article that needs to be done. Oh, and run some errands. So the end of my novel will have to wait. I am just too swamped. Tomorrow looks good, maybe I will find time then. Or perhaps...nope not Sat. Chapter meeting. Sunday is church and then the college symposium at the expo center. Am going with a friend and all our teenage children. So. I have no clue when.

And I haven't had any news on the agent/editor front. Am verra anxious. Maybe I should stop worrying about the novel and drink more. Yeah. That's the ticket.

Last minute long distance

Went to Hermiston yesterday to help my parents move into their new home. Wish they were closer as it was about a four hundred mile trip. Across the dessert. I have to admit that it was much better than going up to the Tacoma area. They were happy to show off their new digs. Unfortunately, when the former owner vacated the premises on Saturday, he left one of the fawcets that attach to the washing machine turned on a wee bit. We are talking 30 to 40 gallons of water in the hall and back bedroom. The real estate lady bought a shop vac. Yeah, right. Then she sent a young carpet guy to clean up. All they had was a cleaner wet carpet. My dh got pretty fired up and insisted on a water specialist. The water was clear to the sub floor. So the real estate lady brought in a contracter and we ripped up the carpeting and pad and then crawled under the house. The carpet guy brought in big fans. Then the delivery guy brought the bed that was supposed to go in the bedroom that was covered in water. All the while we kept unloading the U-haul and truck. Because the U-haul had to be taken back to the U-haul store. Which was God knows where. And my 90 year old dad was seriously getting tired and my 70 year old mom wasn't far behind.

But I tell you... small town chacter really showed itself. The carpet kid kept calling dad to find out how they could help. The real estate lady was paying for everything. The contracter gave us his card and told us to call him for anything and that my parents would be taken care of. The young delivery kid knew the young carpet kid and they all knew the real estate lady and the contracter. The delivery kid and the carpet kid promised to come help them get the rest of the furniture on the porch into the house once the carpets had been fixed. So nice and helpful.

So we came back to the city and while I was worried I also felt that they would be taken care of. Of course, I will no doubt have to go back over the weekend. Oh and we got a flat on the way home and my dh had to fix it lying on the side of the Interstate while semis sped passed at 65 miles an hour. Fun stuff.

I missed a whole day of writing and didn't get a single important piece of mail. But sometimes that happens. Maybe today.

Monday Madness

Actually it wasn't too bad for a Monday.

I made out my to do list, rewrote my articles due list and cleaned out my mail box. I trolled for some article sources and wrote some relatives that needed writen.

I need to catch up onto my NW woman work and write up some articles, but mostly, I would like to finish my novel. I am so ready to put that on the back burner for a bit and concentrate on something else.

And I am feeling liek I suck. LOL Ever get that feeling? That you really just suck and no one is going to tell you the truth? I am starting to get that feeling. Like I want something so bad and it just isn't going to happen. Maybe because I do want it so bad? I don't know when I got that bad cloud feeling. The brain tumor might have had something to do with it!

Anyhoo... Sent of a proposal to an agent looking for a YA writer for a package deal today. Thought I might as well... what do I have to lose?

Though I am getting tired of living my life on pins and needles. Do writers always do this?

Okay... If I plan on finishing the article I might want to get started!

My boy on his way to the symphony

Free Weekend!

I have a free weekend. Well, not completely free. We have to go pick up car we bought for ds and go to the dump. We also have church tomorrow.

But I have nothing on the calendar that says I have to be somewhere at a certain time. Which means I have the weekend to work on my house and on my fiction. Cause I have no nonfiction deadlines either. YAY! WOOHOO!

So between finishing up chapter 11 (and making the 40,000 word mark) I will be cutting back the peonies, dusting the stuff on the hutch and laying the tiles in out bedroom closet. Makes for a busy, yet relaxing weekend. Work I don't mind. Having to be somewhere at a certain time freaks me out. Really. Hence the whole stay at home, homeschooling mom, freelance writer thing! I figure I drive enough. Plus having to look nice? YUK! I'm such a schlep.

You all have fun this weekend. I know I will!

Shhhh do not disturb.....

I got up way too early and I am trying to write...

wish me luck!

Another chapter down

Another little chapter bites the dust!

Polished off (see that says polished off not polished) chapter ten. I am not sure I liked the way it ended. Did not end with a bang nor even a crackle. More like a fizzle. But that is okay. I will fix it later, it was just important that I finished it. At this point I am wishing all I had to do was the novel. I would focus and finish that this week, but alas, tiz not to be (Forgive me, I was chanelling some dead writer) And you can't finish much by averaging 600 words a day. Snort. A chapter a week maybe which is about what I've been doing.

How many words do you average a day?

Didn't finish the flu article yesterday so must finish that up. Sort of ironic to be writing about colds and flues when I have one. Hee.

I keep thinking I should get a job. A writing job of some sort. I know, it's seems like I have enough on my plate and I do, but I need more money. The NWW doesn't pay a lot yet, the writing pays well, but frankly, I need something steadier. Hard to tell dh that I may or may not get a check this week. Or I may or may not get one next week either. Of course, if I sell a couple of fiction books it would be different. The old DH would know that every quarter I will get a bit of something.

I should sell another one to WD. One of the three I have sold to them, has been used three different times. I get money every time they use it. Nice, eh?

Okay, must run and get something done. Boy volunteers at zoo today.

The cold is...

sure taking its time in coming. My joints ache and my throat hurts, and my nose is slightly stuffy. But I know it gets worse cause my kids are hacking up a storm and have heads full of the yukky stuff. I feel like it is taking forever to come and I want it to get here and get gone, so I freaking feel better instead of this general under the weather kind of feeling.


I didn't get any new stuff written yesterday on the novel, but I did a lot of editing and revising. Posted chapter nine for my crit group to tear apart. I had to edit and send one article and write another, but I got them done too. I have another one due tomorrow and another due at the end of the week. Lots of writing this week. But at least the money will be coming in next month... always a good thing.

Still waiting for agents and the editor to get back to me. And I just keep eating while I wait. What's up with that?

Too bloody early

So just what am I doing up at 6:45 am? Good question. Got up to get a drink, dh was up and I just stayed up talking. He worked four twelve hour shifts this week and we barely got to see each other except to pass to do lists and instructions. I need money for this, you need to drop this off, you have to pick up boy at this time and take him there... that sort of thing. So when he went to bed I thought I would hop up and get some work done.

I did kick some serious literary butt so far this weekend... finished chapter nine and am halfway through chapter ten. Am concerned though... so much has to come together. I finished up some very key scenes and I htink they are pretty good... we will see. Now I just have to keep the momentum going. Keep the pace up to a, hopefully, smashing finish. I am almost scared. I only alloted 45,000 to 50,000 words for the book and I am hoping that I make it in that frame. I also hope it's good.

Anyone else ever feel that way as they come to the end of the book?

Sort of weird and nervous.

Right now I am working on an article on food allergies.

I am also coming down with that bloody cold. Sniff. Just what I needed.

But if I get three articles done today, I only need to do one article next week and I will have invoiced enough to make it next month and be able to concentrate on my novel next week. Of course, if am sick, I may not be all that creative.

I better go finish that first article.

A week in review

Not too bad... out of the 16 things I had on my list I finished 12 of them. I put off on article onto next week and took one from next week to finish this week. I haven't finished chapter nine yet, but plan on doing that once I am done blogging.

I feel pretty good about what I'm accomplishing. I'm averaging a chapter a week and that doesn't include edits. I would really like to move a little faster, but you've seen my to do list. I need to cut myself some slack.

I have already gone to the rink this morning and have to take her back and rop her off this evening. She wants to skate club and then public with her friends. Ethan on the other hand is helping with the Junior high youth group air soft war this evening so he has to be at the church just before the girl has to be at the rink. Then I have to pick everyone up. One nice thing though... I am not sick yet and I do get some quiet time to work on novel:)

This weekend I have to work on the house and write up a couple of articles. Sunday is church then a meeting with the youth pastor to see what is happening with the kids this year.

Sounds like more driving to me.

I know it's coming...

My daughter is sick and considering how much time we spend in the car together I know it's gonna get me too. Just what I need with a list like this weeks!

I am actually doing pretty good on that list. Got a bunch of stuff crossed off. Though I have to wonder how I am going to get through the next few days. I have to do about three articles and send My YA proposal to that agent who requested it. My son starts volunteering at the zoo today. Two days a week. How does that cut into my writing time, eh? But I run his sister all over creation, why not him? Still, with the price of gas... I am really pushing him hard to start using public transportation. He is almost 16 and the fact that he is over 6 feet and almost 200 pounds makes me feel pretty secure. Get thee to a bus, child!

Yesterday was pretty good on the novel... I wrote over a thousand words and took it up above the 30,000 mark. I got some fab input from a great editor. She confirmed some of the stuff that I had suspected and also reassured me that it is a very strong peice of work and will find a home. She used to be a professional editor for Harlequin so I feel much better for her input. I would love to get chapter 9 done today or tomorrow and start in on edits, but I have those 3 articles that are also crying for attention. Perhaps someday I will do only fiction and make sort of a living. I don't have to make a working living, just a helping living, if you know what I mean:)

Got up to early. Sick girl woke me up at 4:30 am. I couldn't go back to sleep. She managed to though.

To Do List Monday

Remember I only make out my to do list on Monday. I have all week to do it!That said this week is going to be a killer. Once again, I have been focusing too much attention on my fiction. Bad me.


Chop book club article and send
Finish Scared stiff and send
Send partial to agent who requested it over the weekend. (YEAH!)
Send out questions for high risk dads
Send out questions for Food Allergies
Send out questions for breastfeeding generations
Write breastfeeding generations and send
Find sources for breast changes
Write and send in breast changes
Get sources for kids and the flu
Find sources for getting in the mood
Write chapter nine
Make out RSVP list for the tiara club
Do tiara club
Let author know her book was selected for the club
Let other authors their book wasn't

Home to do

Take daughter to the rink eight times
Take son to the rink twice
Show son how to ride public transit to zoo by doing it with him (First time:)
Take son to zoo one time. (He volunteers twice a week and I told him I would take him once and he would have to ride public transit once.)
Help with school work probably a dozen times. (Both my teens are homeschooled and though they are online students I still have to help)
Help husband get started on closet project that he said he would do 4 months ago and we took all of our stuff out and tore it down.
Check and see who has dentist appointments cause I forgot to put them on calendar
Take son to Youth Council meeting at highschool
Get blood test taken
Pay coach
Mop new floors because they are getting disgusting


Now I am totally overwhelmed and just want to go to bed. It's a wonder I get any fiction writing done at all, eh?

People are so nice...

Thanks everyone for your recent kindness to my angst. You should have all just slapped me upside the head and told me to get on with it! I am a professional. I get rejections quite often and some are far more hurtful. But being a writer I have a big imagination and I had envisioned agents courting me and fighting for my book. (Well, if you're gonna dream might as well dream big)

Speaking of dreaming, I want to talk a minute about agent blogs. You know, those agents who are so fun, on the ball and approachable that they have their own blogs and mingle with the worthy and the unworthy alike. I lurve these agents and most of us would just about die to obtain their Goddess like agent services. I haunt their sites like some sort of stalker. I love knowing what they're doing. (But then I think, what they aren't doing is reading my proposal that is sitting on their desk.) It's almost like I expect them to write in their blog

I just finished reading the next YA sensation by a writer called Teri Brown and I am so in awe of her that I don't dare talk to her myself . So Teri, if you are reading this please, please allow me to represent you!

Okay, I am approaching the abyss of insanity here, but you know what I mean!

Speaking of the utterly boring name of Teri Brown, I am thinking of using a pen name for my YA. I want to keep some form of my name for my adult romances because Teri or TJ Brown will put me next to Sandra Brown on the shelf:)

My maiden name is Foreman... which might be interesting. My middle name is Jean. Or should I go completely different? Any ideas? Alesia Holliday already has Jax Abbot which I think is totally cool. Think about it. Let me know:)

They're just not that into me...

Got my first rejection in the posty today.

I feel like this is just the beginning. You know the feeling.

When no matter how many pep talks you give yourself you just feel like...

You're just not that good.

Everything the little voice whispered in your darkest moments are all confirmed.

blogmania

I don't know why I called my blog that.... I just couldn't think of anything else.

I wasn't able to write anything else yesterday on the work in progress because I took the wrong floppy to the rink. Instead I wrote the synopsis to my new book and I can't even tell you how excited I am about this one! I wish I could work on it right now, but I am not allowing myself till I finish RInk Rats.

I just had a CP call me on the lack of sparkle in my writing. I love CP's. I so needed that. Sometimes I just skim across the story instead of getting into it and drawing the reader with me. My old nonfiction voice coming out. Report it, don't experience it. Now I know there are those non-fiction writers who can take you into a world with them, but that isn't the type of stuff I do. I write magazine fluff. Read it quickly and hopefully have some take away value. But that is totally different from novel writing.

Wow. I should query WD about that. Trading Voices... oh, that would so sell! Okay... I am going to put that on my to do list for this week!

In fact. I am going to go start that now. Or when I get back from the freaking rink. The rink time is my novel writing time.

Loving the business....

What a great day!

Okay. Since I had to get up at 5:30 am I'm not sure how it can be a great day already, but hey... it just is. I already put out feelers for experts on three articles I need to finish up. I read and answered email. I was sent a website that states the average advance and earn out on books with many publishers. Loved going over that. The woman puts it together from info she gets from authors and she lists how many books the average is taken from. Then a list I'm on is talking about how long to negotiate the contract to actual pay out. Yeah. Keep your day job:)

But I love talking about the business... knowledge is power, baby.

Plus one of my online friends just spilled the news that she just sold a series of books to Berkly. (Who I am hoping to hear from soon!)

I am trying not to think about the six agents and editors (Okay, editor, but plural sounds better, eh?) who have my proposal on their desk.

Other than the waiting this is a fun business, right? Oh, and the rejections. Don't like them much either.

I did get another 600 words yesterday. That makes 1200 for the week, but I plan on getting some done this morning as well.

The bus, the bus

I don't know where it is but I know it's been here cause it damn near flattened me.

I am getting 7 1/2 hours of sleep a night but it might as well be 5 for all I'm feeling it. I was going to go workout tomorrow, but the dh wouldn't wait for me so I didn't. Yeah, I know... always someone else's fault. Yada, yada, yada.
But in the words of a famous Southern Belle, "Today is another day." Or was it tomorrow is another day? I like that one. Put everything off until tomorrow.

I finished 600 words last night. Was going for a thousand, but family stuff took priority. My son was in the mood to talk and at 15, you take them up on it. So 600 lousy words. But could be worse, I might have not finished any. I did cross a bunch of other stuff off my list yesterday and was, in fact, quite productive. But not on the novel. Oh to be able to do nothing but work on it, day after day...to have that be my regular job...

And here I thought I was awake.

Am still layering, but am wondering if it is consistant enough. Will no doubt have to read the whole thing over and over to find out. And hopefully editors will see any holes I have left. Of course, someone has to give me that shot.

I wrote out the timeline that agents/editor received my book. I have a long ways to go before I hear anything. I really wanted the book to be nearly completed in that time, but that may not happen. Depends on how quickly I can get everything else done. Snort. I know, I should make time just for the book. Consistant time. Read a good article yesterday about being consistant and having a writing schedule and I am afraid that really isn't going to happen in my life right now. But maybe I can fill the first three days of the week up with my nonfiction work, get it out of the way, if possible, to free myself up for my fiction. Of course...that means doing without it for three days and I am not sure I wanna do that!

speaking of which...I'm outie.

Another Monday...

To do list day.

• Write chapter eight (I finished chapter seven, (yay me!)
• Edit Breastfeeding and PPD and send
• Write Bend article and send
• Read encouraging notes from agents over and over
• Find sources for Breastfeeding Generations
• Find sources for Scared Stiff
• Finish Scared Stiff and send
• Make reservations for Tiara Club
• Send out invites for Tiara Club
• Secure date for Holiday Fest and send to main office
• Pick Dec/Jan book club book
• Send out note to all those whose books were not picked
• Send out book club article
• Do Ookum Bookum dance over requested partial and send
• Send 1 query
• Write and ask for October assignments.
• Catch up on crits for CP partners

Just your average, ordinary week. Oh, and add edit chapter seven as the crits from my CPs come in. I distanced too much again. I have a tendency to do that. My CPs call me on it.

I am really happy to be starting a new chapter. Hopefully this won't be as difficult to work out. I am hoping for some good flow. I deserve it don't I? Heck, I might finish the silly thing before any of the agents get back to me. I have one agent that wants to see it when finished so if they don't get back to me I will just send to her! HA!

Have I ever mentioned that I hate to wait? Even as busy as I am it just kills me. Say yes, or say no..just don't NOT say anything!

Clarification... Today is to do list day. Which means I make out the to do list for the next week! No, I do not do this in a day! LOL

On Procrastination

I should be writing.

I wanted to get that right out front. Considering that Gena Showalter finished the first draft of her new YA novel in a week, I feel like a slacker taking several months with On the Edge. And I should be writing on it as we speak.

I did want to tell of my great fun day though. It was the meeting for my local RWA chapter, Rose City Writers. So much talent! Good speaker. But the most fun was talking to Delilah Ahrendt, who turns out to be one of the clients who went with Nadia Cornier to her new agency. How exciting. She adores Nadia. Verra interesting stuff. I love talking about the business.

But I should be writing. I'm having trouble with this chapter. Thought I'd be done with it now, but for some reason there's no flow. I think being busy has something to do with it. I haven't been able to get any long periods of time in which to work. I did go back and layer in a separation for one of the main character's parents. That's something, right?

I got another request for a partial. Wish me luck with that. Found out that I may not hear from that editor for two or three months. TWO OR THREE MONTHS! I thought I would write her after a month. Harumph.

My sad to do list...

Out of my 14 item to do list I have only accomplished eight things. Too sad. Perhaps I will cross off a couple more things today. I have a skate club board meeting tonight and have to run a computer back to the shop...but still maybe if I work hard I will be able to finish my nonfiction articles and chapter seven.

Oh, that probably means I shouldn't be blogging. Sigh.

600 Words

That's all I was able to write in my book yesterday. And that was only in spurts. No creativitiy. No flow. Just me wanting to make some sort of progress. I did finish up a restaurant review. did some research. Write a bunch of emails to sources. I also did a bunch of running around.

But I hate not having made any progress on the novel. I need to finish that sucker so I can go back in and layer in my plot ideas and some characterization stuff. One of the girls parents is now getting a divorce. Poor thing had no idea. But I have to go back and layer some stuff in to make it happen cause it will affect how she is behaving. But I feel like I don't want to do it until the book is done. Which is stupid. I should just go back and do it now. Progress. I just want to make some progress.

Can you tell I am a bit frustrated? I didn't finish the whopping cough article yesterday and must do it today. My daughter has a lesson at the rink and I have to rush home and get my son to the dentist. Then I have to get him to the Rink cause he has to work today. Somehow or another I have to write my nonfiction article and still work on the novel. Oh, I also have to take one of the laptops back because it isn't working right. I think the screen is going out. I am not sure how much writing on the novel I will be able to do with all that going on.

Oh, hey, in a way I did add some to the book. Pages! I changed the format so it has one inch borders all around it. Added 12 pages:)

So Tired

My mind is just numb.

I was up till midnight last night "talking" with my husband. All is good now, but sometimes you just have to hash things out. I wish he would feel like hashing at a decent hour I can tell you. I was up at 5:25 am yesterday, did a ton of running around and just felt like crap about nine. By twelve I was incoherent.

Now I have to write about whooping cough. And PPD and breastfeeding.

Not to mention chapter seven.

My new characters are clamoring for their voice too. Colorless dances around in my brain and I am coming up with new scenes and new ideas all the time. I'm not sure if I should be writing them down or what. Maybe I should just let them dance. I really don't want to take time away from the first draft of Rink Rats.

How many of you write more than one book at a time?

On Long Weekends

I hate long weekends.

Yeah, I know it's practically unamerican (Is that capitalized? Looks weird.) I should love them. Weekends hearlding the beginning of summer or the beginning of the new school year. Weekends kicking off the holiday season, or giving us a break during the long, cold winter.

But I don't.

When you love what you do and half the time what you do involves either waiting for a response from someone or trying to get in touch with someone, long weekends simply increase your waiting hell. Because people don't just take the weekend off. They take the whole freaking week. Editors don't seem to think I take any time off cause they give me deadlines right in the middle of the bloody weekend.

I got a short email from an agent last night. Yeah, late Sunday night. I wanted to hug her. Or at the very least tell her how much we have in common because she obviously doesn't like long weekends either! I didn't though. Don't want her to think I am stalking her.

One more day. Then hopefully the wheels of the publishing business will start churning again.

me and Penny

My news

okay will spill some.

Networking is amazing. Was on a new list and introduced myself. Told about my WIP. One very nice, multipublished author said that if I really knew my stuff I should try her editor because the editor is a huge skate fan. I said I knew my stuff, she talked to her editor and the editor requested the proposal immediately. Major editor. Major house.

This all happened in a flurry of emails in one day. One morning actually.

Most of me understands that I will no doubt get a rejection.

But there is that part...

Of course, that's the part that will be crushed when I get the rejection. LOL

In the meantime, I have a gazillion things to do and I don't want to do any of it. I should:

Write article on special needs finances
Finish restauraunt review and turn it in
Finish book club interview and turn it in.
Write feature on Bend Oregon and turn it in
Finish editing chapter six and send to crit group
Balance checkbook
pick up moms computer from the shop
take daughter to the mall to get hair cut
take son to sears to pick up amazing deals on games

Yeah. Can I go back to bed?

Defining moment?

Who knows in this business. I may be just getting set up for super let down.

Or it could be exciting. And stupendous.

But you never know, so keep everything you have crossed for me, k?

Pretty please?

On Gleeking. Or Gleecking...or...

I have no clue how's it spelled. None. But my daughter can do it.

"Mom!" she says coming into the room. "I can gleek."

"Excuse me? Aren't you to young to gleek?" At this pooint I have no clue what's she's talking about, but it sounds faintly dirty. If anyone gets to gleek in this house it's gonna be me.

"No, gleek, Mom, gleek. You know how sometimes you'll be eating or talking and a small spray of spit squirts out of your mouth?"

Know it? Some of the worse times in my life are when I accidently gleeked during a job interview or a date or something. I just called it a weird thing. Or the end of my life as I knew it.

"Yeah."

"I can do it on demand." And she does.

I stare, fascinated. "Do it again." She does. "No way! How do you do that?"

We head in the bathroom and she gives me a few lessons on gleeking. Unfortunately, I am not a gleeker. I roll the crap out of my tongue for fifteen minutes. Nothing. My daughter on the otherhand is a veritable font of spittle. Who knew?

It figures. I am a random gleeker.

And no. You can't use this in your book cause it's all mine!

four agents

That's the count as now. Four agents want to look at my little unfinished work, On the Edge. Or the first book in the RInk Rats Series. I also have one agent that wants to see it as soon as it is done and edited. That is exciting. Except I am not going to get my hopes up. Been here before. Yes, I write better now and yes, the concept and the idea were perfect...but still. Okay. Maybe just a little up. I wouldn't be human otherwise.

I have a 16 item to do list this week. I got four done. Oops, nope, make that three. Of course one of those things was to finish up chapter 6 and I worked on that quite a bit. And getting out the agent packets took a long time. So hopefully I will finish up some other things today.

But this morning I am going to use one of the new laptops we bought the kids and stay at the rink. Because our gas bill was 300 dollars last month. It's all the back and forth. Sometimes it is five times a day. Stupid. So she either stays all day or I stay until she is done.

Speaking of which. She is behind me throwing a fit to go so I'm off!

For Lease

One slightly used writer.

Writer of two nonfiction books, countless articles for national and regional magazines, and one audio book, wishes to trade nonfiction credits for full time fiction career.

Writer is only slightly neurotic, but with great potential. Many ideas and marketing strategies for fiction works. Enthusiastic and has many references.

Greatest strenth: Work Ethic
Greatest weakness: Impatience

Seeking professional literary agent with a sense of humor, business savvy, and hands on approach. Must be willing to contact writer once a week. Must have many contacts throughout the publishing world as writer would like to work in both Romance and Young Adult. Must be able to ignore drunken missives on MRI day.

In exchange, writer will bow down and worship you.

(well, maybe not worship... but I'll be real grateful)

Nervous Breakdown

My, my, my.

Big things afoot for the career. Or not. I'm sort of to the point where I think that whatever I write is redundant tripe and I should give up. And I just know the good stuff won't happen to me. But it might right? I mean, I could end up getting the agent of my dreams. I really hate the uncertainty. And I hate not being able to tell people what is going on. And the reason I can't tell people is because I broke the rules and if it doesn't pan out I don't want people to say, "that was stupid, why did you think you would be an exception to the rules?" Of course, if it does end up working out then I will be one of the few who broke the rules and it worked.

So when did I become the sort of person who didn't expect good things? Oh, Yeah. The day they told me I somehow beat the odds and came down with an incredibly rare brain tumor. Yeah. That was it. Oh and when the doctor told me the chances of getting a secondary tumor from the radiation were extremely slim, I just laughed. Which is why I drink a bottle of wine every MRI Day. And the last one... not too long ago led me to the next paragraph.

Last MRI day I did something so stupid I just can't believe it. I was under the influence of my MRI bottle of wine. Then I tried to fix it and was even more stupid. She, who shall not be named, knows what I am talking about and I hope I will be telling this story when I am rich and famous. Until then, I hope it never gets out.

The tiara club went well. I wore my tiara and one other person did as well. I had a nice showing of about ten. Am hoping for twice that many next time. But I will have a nice report back to the boss. I won't tell her about knocking my chair over.

And my parents are here. Oh, and they are getting back together again. The story is too long to get into. But I guess I am happy. After all my 89 year old dad would be happier.

I should just get back to work. Lose myself in something besides worry! HA!

Never a Beauty Queen

Now, I am not traditionally beautiful. Or pretty. Or even cute actually. I used to pass for cute sometimes when my hair was long and glossy and my skin tanned. I have lovely colored skin... and I used to have a pretty amazing body when I wore high heels. But at 40, cute just doesn't work anymore. I'm not even well groomed and love to sit around in sweats and a t-shirt. No, I'm not whining. I have a point.

Today I have to run a tiara club meeting. When I signed up for this it was called a Power Hour and women in business would get together and network. "Oh, I can do that!" I told my editor.

Then she changed it on me. Now it's the tiara club. She wanted to add an element of fun to the meeting. Yay. She even bought me this gorgy, very expensive tiara. Today is the first meeting of the tiara club and we are meeting in a very popular restaurant. People are going to see me in my tiara and know I was never a beauty queen. My editor won't be there this time. I think I will see if anyone else is wearing a tiara and then slip mine off at the last minute. See, even at 40 peer pressure gets to me.

These are the slots of my life

Everything in my life has slots. I feel as if my life were one big in- mail slot with everything catagorized. You know the kind, the ones you set on your desk to shove papers in that you are supposed to get around to filing later only six months go by and you haven't even looked at it? That kind. I have the northwest woman magazine slot. I have the fiction slot. I have the freelance slot. I have the mommy slot. I have the figure skating club slot. I have the wife slot. I have the home slot. Sometimes my slots collide. Too much going on at one time. Not sure which slot to put stuff in or if it is even worth slotting. This morning I had the mommy slot, the freelance slot, the NW Woman slot and the wife slot all clamoring for attention. What about the I need a shower slot?

Maybe I should tell them all to slot off?

Morning... I think

Stayed up way too late last night working on my fiction. I integrated another crit to it and worked on chapter 5. I have like 83 pages now, so I'm slowly but surely coming along. I just wish I could see this morning! Have to take the ice princess to the rink and then get back to work. I'd rather go back to bed.

I sat down and did quite a bit of plotting on On the Edge. I worked each chapter out on a 3x5 card and attached them together with a paper clip. I started with the ending so I knew where I was going, I just had to figure out how to get there. I think it is going to help a lot as I write. I have never done that kind of plotting before, so this is new to me. How do you plot your novels?

Not so much chaos

I have been a bad, bad girl. I have been working on my fiction to the exclusion of my nonfiction. I made zero bucks this week. Sigh. I am just so excited about my project. The writing is going very well. Better than very well. I just finished up chapter 4 and I think it's pretty darn good. I revised and edited chapters 1-3 and I think they are pretty darn good too. I am excited learning about my craft in my YA class and I think Lauren is a fab teacher. She has been giving me some good ideas on revising and it has made a big difference. Of course, my crit groups has made a world of difference in my writing as well. I totally recommend the Lauren's class, though. Will add her blog soonest. She and her agent Nadia (I would spell her last name out, but don't want to slaughter it) are doing a book on Writing YA for Writer's Digest books... how cool is that? I knew it was a fab class!

So now I am on chapter 5 and not wanting to stop to work on the different kinds of bedwetters or how to help baby sleep through the night. At over 15,000, I am a third of the way done with the book. Not sure of what is going to happen... some of it is a bit sketchy, but I have faith it will turn out. I also have a couple of ideas for adding depth to a couple of my characters.

Next week is going to be a very busy week. I hope to get some more work done on my YA, but I have a lot of NW Woman stuff to do. I would love to get some big advances and just live off my fiction!

Dream on eh?

Can we say chaos?

Got my desk put together. Got my stuff put away. Felt ready for the day. I wasn't. ACK!

Can we say Chaos? I didn't know wether to do my NW woman work or my bread and butter pay the bills work. I tried to do both... but was highly distracted. Then I had a focus groups luncheon to go to as a NW Woman rep. It was a free lunch, but NO Martinis! Sigh. I think better after a drink or two. At least I think I do;-) Snort. I did have a good time and made a lot of contacts.

Also had coffee with a friend at 7am, found some sources for one of my articles and finished up another one. Unfortunately, I don't seemed to have saved chapter four of my fiction WIP. Piss!

Okay must rush off and find a cool place to hang. And I mean cool as in cold. Don't care about "cool". Hee.

sorta back....

And sorta not.

My computer is set up on the kitchen island and I am in my wingback chair, squinting at the screen because it is too far away. I have a laptop, but it doesn't have enough memory to take the verizon download. So here I am.

The remodel was far more difficult than I had planned, but that is generzlly the case, is it not? My marraige may not make it through it, (I don't know what I ever saw in that controlling, perfectionistic man who has appointed himself Mr. Quality Control!) But at least when I get the house it will be a gorgeous one! With new floors even and a brand new paint job! Am waiting for Mr. Mean to give the okay on ordering my new desk. I know I really shouldn't wait for him and if he waits too much longer, I won't. Making me nuts. The new desk is fab. Ultra modern which may sound like it clashes with the dark cherry Queen Anne tables I scored at the garage sale, but since they are in another section of the great room, hopefully not. It is a black stell and glass jobby shaped like an L. http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StaplesProductDisplay?prodCatType=2&storeId=10001&catalogId=10051&langId=-1&productId=92177

Will look wonderful against my dark red walls and lovely new floor. And the cool new art I also scored at the garage sale, black and white photos of old Portland.

Okay, that is all for now! Must get back to getting my house workable. I hope to be up and running by Monday. I still have to prime and paint the molding and finish the doors. Am tired of going potty behind a blanket... I want a real bathroom door!

Heading out

Just wanted to let you know I am going to be offline for a few days... It is time to do the floors. The painting is finished except for touch ups and we rent the sander tomorrow. Wish us luck. My husband is having anxiety attacks.

Is going to look so fab when we are done! I did the Skating Club garage sale yesterday and am so glad I did... I bought five black and white prints of old Portland for a buck each! Then I bought a gorgeous coffee table/end table set for 65 dollars. It is dark cherry Queen Anne style and unbelievably beautiful. WIll go perfect with my dark Currant Jam walls and soon to be mahogany stained floors! Now I just need a new couch. Hee!

see ya people!

I was a Madwoman

To have looked forward to this!

House is a mess. Will get to a hundred degrees today and I have to be done by Sunday so we can start the floors on Monday with everything dry.

Am still able to work a bit, but no fiction. No crits.

Must go paint.

Monday Madness

Am excited about the week. Well, sorta. Here's a breakdown:

• Writing: I just finished most of an article due today and it was actually pretty fun to write. I still have to get in touch with one expert for permission on something... I hope that will go easy and also be fun:)
• I got some great feedback on my YA fiction and it is getting better and better. I honestly think if I work hard I can send the first three chapters to that interested agent this week.
• Homelife: I am painting my house this week! YAY! It has needed it so badly for such a long time. I took all the stuff off the walls yesterday washed the first ones with TSP and edged the ceiling. Today I need to Paint the ceilings and start doing the priming edging on the clean walls. If I get that done I may wash the other walls. But probably won't get to it. I have to finish this week cause next week is refinishing the hardwood FLOORS!

So I am pretty stoked. I will no doubt be exhausted soon!

Lucky Thirteen

I am feeling pretty durn good about myself.

I wrote thirteen pages in On the Edge yesterday and finished out chapter three. I am going to go over those three chapters with a fine toothed comb and then put them up to my critique partners. I have an agent who said she would look at them for me once I had three chapters done, so those 3 chapters need to be simply smokin. Right now I am not even sure if they are sparking let alone smoking. We'll see. Now that I have hit upon the concept of GMC, I am anxious to make sure my charaters have them. At least my main characters. Let's see.

Cassie--Goal: To win first place at regionals and go onto sectionals and to get a date for her junior Senior Prom
Motivation: Her love of figure skating
Conflict: The new girl in town is threatening both her figure skating dreams and going after the guy
she thinks she wants to go out with.
Theresa-- Goal: To be a champion figure skater
Motivation: respect, money, fame
Conflict: She has very little money to support her skating and very few people believe in her.

That are the GMC breakdown of my two main characters. I could do it for all of them and I can see why knowing that would help. I am excited about this story and also my next one.

I am not that excited about the nonfiction work I have to get done today. But it will be good for the over all GMC of my household:)

Left Behind

I swear, I must be the only romance writer NOT in Reno. Maybe I will start on that new romance that has been brewing in me head. I have a lot of fiction writing to do, but had to catch up with my nonfiction work before I could hop off and be creative. I finally invoiced a thousand. Very slow month. That is half of what I invoiced last month. I was supposed to work extra hard this month because I needed the money next month. See how that works? Now I have gone and messed up the whole plan.

Meggie's Skates have come in. Poor dear. They are killing her feet. She will have to put about fifteen hours in them before they begin to break in to comfortable. She skated for about 30 minutes yesterday and will do another hour today, broken up of course. Tomorrow she will have to skate for an hour at one time. Her coach is pretty tough... she will not be happy if Megs doesn't put in the time. have to run to get her to the rink!

Back in the Saddle...

Yawn. Spent the weekend in Bend, a wonderful summer and winter getaway and the place where I was raised. Well, I live din Alfalfa, but it's all Central Oregon. My son and I had a wonderful time. I forget what a great kid he is. We must have talked in the dark at the B&B for two hours before we finally had to call it a night. How cool is that? Especially with a teenager!

My daughter must have missed me. We spent an hour or so last night cleaning the house then she wanted to help me with my writing business. She designed some aqdvertising tracking sheets for me and looked up some names. I also think I am going to let her help with some of the promotional work. She is, after all, a young northwest woman! Maybe I can train her into being my Assistant and hire her arse when the office goes in. Nepotism at it's best:) She's a lot more organized than I am anyway.

Have to make out my weekly to do list today... Am swamped as this is the last week that I can get invoicing done and am way far below the average for the month. Lots of stuff going on! I have several articles that have to be finished and a few more that need to be roughed drafted by the end of the week. I need to put together a partial for an agent, do tons of NW woman work, Work like a mad woman prepping the house for painting and finish up the third chapte rin Rink Rats. I woulds also like to do some Goal, Motive and Conflict work on my new novel and for Rink Rats.
Better run!

Working on Fiction

When I should really be working on my nonfiction. Oy! I have so many projects going it is hard to keep track. I worked on my YA novel yesterday. I finished switching chapter two over to third person. I think I like it, but I keep distancing the reader and the character. I think I need more dialogue. I will work on that in chapter three which will be from a different person's POV. I am being a wimp here. If a YA novel's word count is only 40K, then in reality I could pump this sucker out in 20 days. Now I understand that is a bit fast, but even 1ooo a day is forty days! I really need to focus on using the first hour or so of my day for just fiction. Warm up here at the old blog site and then just bite into it! Go for it, you know?

On the nonfiction news front... I got a promotion yesterday... I am now a contributing editor for Family Energy Magazine! A new spanky title and a new spanky raise. Go Me!

Now I just have to get some serious work done! I should do at least three articles this week and then four next week if I could! I have to have at least ten finished a month to make the small womanly's ice skating fees. That is my goal. Then to save some money for the laptops we need... then to save for the kids school..then regionals in October. Sheese!
Lots going on this fall and all of it expensive!

Okay... the world of fiction awaits and I must heed it's call!