Choosing Beta's

How do you choose your beta readers?? I'm not quite there, but I've started thinking about it. I want someone who will be brutally honest, but constructive. How does everyone else choose??

 

Oh, and how many do you give it to? Do you let friends read it? Family?

Also, I found a great new blog today via Jessica Love, and it's featuring a contest with a great review! Go check it out here —Carolina Valdez Miller.The prize is a SIGNED copy of this...

Such a beautiful day today, although my baby has a severe case of pneumonia. :( That breaks my heart, but he sits here propped up in my bed with a humidifier as I sit at the computer and write. Making the best of a cruddy situation. Back to work!! :)

The About Me Bag...A Character Analysis

    I've been over at WriteOnCon the past few days when I've been able to. It's wonderful and kudos to the ladies that bring it to us. More kudos to those authors, agents, and editors that participate. Yay!
One thing I've heard mentioned frequently is knowing your characters. It seems obvious, and at first glance you think, "Well duh, I dreamed up these characters...of course I know them!" 

    But do you??? I don't know. I thought I knew mine, but I did a little exercize with myself and found I might have some work to do. No, I KNOW I have some work to do. However, I enjoyed this exercise and I'm particularly proud because I came up with it myself. *pats back*

    So yesterday my boys went back to school (insert happy dance) and they both came home with an identical assignment. They were both titled The About Me Bag. Here is what it involves.

    Pick 3 items to put into the bag that you can present to the class. These items must tell us something about you.

This is a random google image kid, not my child! Although he is a cutie!

    So, obviously we went around finding photos of them with their brothers (I have 2 brothers), Darth Vader Lego minifigures ( I love Lego's and Star Wars), a Photo of Abe Lincoln (I love learning about history...my 8 year old is the bomb.com!) and other things that a little boy would show to represent his precious little life.
Of course one of my children asked me, "What would you put in your bag mom? A camera?"

"Hmmmmm. Probably something related to my photography, a picture of my beautiful family, and a book." I said.

They seemed pleased with this answer. All of those items fit me perfectly. I think even my husband would have chosen those three items for me. They clearly show who I am.

    Well, the writer in me started thinking about my....duh, writing. (As us writers always do) So I started to wonder what my main characters would have in their bags. Here is the scary part. I wasn't really SURE!!  *GASP* How is that possible?? I could maybe pick one or two items. Maybe. But overall, I realized that I couldn't pinpoint it exactly.

    Ummmm, I think we should know our characters that well...no?! So my mission is to figure out what my characters 3 items would be in their About Me Bag. Let's take it a stop further...what will be in their About Me Bag at the END of the story?!  *Insert dramatic oooooohhhh and awwwwww*

    If were writing a good story, I don't really think their About Me Bag should look the same by the end of the book, know what I mean?? Take this yet another step further. Imagine your character presenting them to the class. (This is especially easy if you write YA...if not, just pretend!) Who is watching? Are they nervous or confident? Do they not put what they really want to in their bag because they are embarssed? Is the bitchy antagonist in the back of the class making fun of them? What was in that girls bag??

    Point is, you can really work this idea to come up with a really clear picture of who your character is. I highly suggest it...or please share what you do to explore your characters!!

A Mommy Milestone

This morning I took my youngest child to Kindergarten. sniff.

If you're a parent, you understand that this is a big deal. It is the start of a new way of life. All your children in school. *sigh*

He did NOT want to smile for this photo!! (I used these on my business blog...hence the markings!)

These two turkeys have been at it awhile. They're over first day photos!

 

Seriously Mom?!? Why are you doing that?! 

He walked right into Kindergarten class and got to work on a coloring sheet. (Smart move teacher!)

 

I'm officially embarking on a new chapter of life. No pun intended...but I'm going to be getting more writing time, more photo editing time....more ME time. My home should stay cleaner, my meals should be better planned, my writing goals should be met. Yes?! We'll see, but I know I'm excited. When your a mother of small children this milestone seems so far off into the future. The thought of actually having a morning where you could meet a friend for coffee is a complete fantasy. But that day comes, and it's a little sad... but so exciting!!

Anyone else have kids starting school today?!

I survived...and was rewarded! :)

First off, I know you are all dying to know how the party went! It was great. Crazy, but great. My son loved the cake (i'll post pics later) and all the little Jedi's passed their training. Phew. It was a crazy weekend. Thankfully my sister was here to help me get ready. Thank goodness.

So, I've now been sitting at my computer since 5:30 A.M.

Reading blogs.

Oh well.

I feel it though! I feel the words getting ready to pour out onto the keyboard. Those many words that will in fact lead up to...MY KISSING SCENE!!!!  I just need to get there. I haven't read a book in....

11 DAYS!!  It's almost to much to handle. I haven't gone that long without reading in almost 3 years. Seriously.  Soon though, and when I do crack open a book, it will be so sweet.

In other news, super duper awesome Bryce, of Bryce Daniels Preservation Society fame gave me an award. Stop by his blog, it's a good read always!

The goal of the award is to spotlight up and coming bloggers who currently have less than 200 followers. The rules of the award are:

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.
2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.
5. And most of all - have bloggity-blog fun!


So, my pics are as follows:

Jacquline of My Greek Ambition. Now, I know most of you are writers...but this is not a writing blog. This is mainly a food and cooking blog, but this girl is great and she has one heck of a story. (I know you all like stories!!) Go read hers, it's adorable! Oh...and I'm sure you all like to eat, eh?

Sherry of Piquant Expressions. She writes Sci-fi and is currently talking a lot about nutrition. Plus she has 3 kids which makes me like her right away! :)

Ghenet of All About Them Words. Her blog is purdy. And she writes YA. Her blog is always a good read!

Freya of A Writer's Endeavour. She writes Childrens Fantasy....uh, awesome! Oh, and lives in the UK. Double awesome.

Alyson of Addicted to Heroines. I just found her blog and straight up LOVED the title!! :)

Phew, okay that took 2 hours...no I'm not kidding! 

Happy Monday! :)

What a DAY!

Today is one of those days. The kind that are wonderful and stressful at the same time. Where you have a lot to do....just so you can get to the good stuff? Know what I'm talking about?

My son is having a birthday party tomorrow. Here. In my house. Ugh. Now I know why we moms are willing to spend buukuu bucks on having the party SOMEWHERE ELSE. There is that whole cleaning thing. It sucks. On top of that, I decided to make him a cake. Double ugh. I actually used to be pretty decent at making cakes. People actually paid me. I quit for a reason. But here I am doing it again for my beloved son.

I was up last night making Lego Star Wars Mini-figures out of fondant. Seriously. It will be awesome though. So today I'm baking, cleaning, fondanting, and all the while planning to get the four of us (me and my 3 boys) ready to hit a huge water park this afternoon with my sister. Oh, and I have a shoot tomorrow morning at like 7 am....before the party at 2:00.

Yeah. Sounds good, right? I will enjoy the water park....when I get us there. The shoot will be fun, although it will be early. (Plus I love this family!) And I will enjoy the party....when it happens. But the stuff in between?? Not so much. After that party tomorrow I will throw on some "soft pants" (as we call slumming clothes) and curl up with a good book to recoup.


Oh wait. Still haven't written through the kissing scene yet.

AHHHHHHH!!!  Sunday + Me = SERIOUS WRITING AND KISSING!!!

Happy Friday Peeps!! :)

What I know for sure....right now.

Today I'm channeling my inner Oprah. I need to do that sometimes. Don't you?


A few things I know for sure today.

Giving my husband back the job of handling the bill paying and finances has been the best decision I've made in the last 5 years. Really.

I'm desperately ready for school to start.

The last two days I've watched more TV than I have in the last year.

I made a deal with myself that I couldn't read another book until the two main characters in my ms have their first kiss. I haven't read anything since last Thursday!!! OMG!! (Hence the tv watching.)

I haven't been able to write because I've had so much picture editing to do. Ugh!!

My little puppy is almost one. He is still a brat! We love him anyway.

I'm feeling rather optimistic about everything lately. It's a good feeling.

The heat here in the Midwest is getting OLD!!

Having my work email give me issues has become a real problem. When you aren't getting your emails, you are just SURE that the ones you're missing are very important. I'm sure I'm missing a local celebrity asking me to shoot their wedding. I'm sure of it!

My wip has suddenly developed a new piece to it's puzzle that I'm very excited about. Don't you love it when your characters reveal a part of themselves to you that you didn't see coming??  Now....if I could just get some time to write!


Happy Tuesday to you!

Snippets of Information

* I wrote 2000 words today. Yes I did. I'm slightly proud of it. It was the good of kind of writing too, the kind that just flows and before you know it your plot has taken on a new dimension you hadn't seen coming. I truly believe it's those days that help us to slog thru the rest. Hear, hear?

* Having my nails painted makes me feel so much prettier and feminine. Seriously. Am I alone?

* The only way I can enjoy the presence of my puppy is for him to have a bone to chew on. The end.

* Muddy backyard + puppy + hysterical woman + carpet = disaster.

* I'm out of bones.

* Sometimes when you run your own business, you should wait for a clients check to clear before paying your own bills. (grrrrrrrrr)

* My children have 2 more days of school. I'm terrified and excited at the same time.

* My heart breaks for the people in Joplin and Reading.

* More storms are on the way. I will sleep with my hard drive. I have peoples weddings on there!!!!

* I'm going out of town with another photographer friend this weekend to a small town in western Kansas to shoot a wedding. I'll be gone all day Friday, Saturday and be back Sunday.

* Yes, western Kansas is exactly what you would imagine. Remote...but the people are so darn friendly and when your children are not around and you have a friend to laugh with—it's as good as paradise.

* My wip is not a YA. Can you forgive me? Should I change my header?

Get on with things alredy.

Four more days of school for my kids. FOUR!

I have mixed feelings on this. Part of me is thrilled to let go of the morning routine. (Although I will still get up at 6:45 and make my husband luch, coffee, and a water bottle. It's what I do!) But nothing beats letting my kids sleep in. The other part of me is dreading the summer boredom. Fighting, whining, hitting etc. It becomes skull splitting.

Thank heaven's for pool passes. Seriously. It must seriously be a lifesaver if I am willing to put on a swimming suit in front of every person in my small town.

Either way, I'm ready to get on with it. The last couple weeks of school I'm just done. DONE! Ready to figure out our new normal for the summer. When your kids are still young every summer is a little bit different than the last.

I'm really hoping to get my husband out the door and then spend the quite morning time writing. (Remember that whole finishing before the end of summer thing I threw out there!! yikes!)

Completely unrelated...I've been working out the last couple of weeks. I'm talking lunges and squats. It's hurting. It's working. I'm seeing the difference. It's kind of awesome. We'll see how this plays out!

Happy very rainy Friday! I just want to crawl in bed and read with the thunder as my backdrop.

What does a rainy day make you want to do??

The need to Read

Yesterday I started reading Stephen Kings book titled On Writing.  (thank you Dawn!)

Wow. I fell in love with him, which is funny because in my life he has represented fear! I remember being about 9 and seeing Cujo on televsion one evening with my mother. I have been scarred ever since. (I also loved it!)

In 6th grade all the boys I knew were reading The Stand. Their arms would bow out beside them grasping their Trapper Keeper, science book, and the hugest book I'd ever seen. I couldn't fathom any 6th grader (except me, ha!) reading a book that big. When my brain made the connection that the author of that massive book was the same mastermind behind Cujo I began having graphic fantasies about what those boys were reading. I remember watching one boy in particular one day. he had finished his assignment and pulled open his monster novel. I watched him closely — just sure that he must be terrified. Sure that he must be reading of blood and gore and very scary things. I was waiting for him to shut the book in terror....unable to continue. It didn't happen.

Want to know a secret? To this day I have no clue what The Stand is about. I'm assuming it's a good book.

So, back to me reading On Writing. Last night I read one part that really resonated with me. He talked about the importance of reading. He stressed his theory that NO ONE can be a good writer without reading. I already agreed with this totally. It just makes sense to me. But I've often questioned my desires to write throughout my life. I even did it through the beginning of this book. Stephen talked about writing all through his adolescent years, his early adult years. Submitting, writing, submitting, rejection....blah, blah, blah.

We've heard this story before. Famous writer wanted it all their life...so they DESERVED to be published. They were better. They wanted it MORE. (That's what we're thinking right???)

Did he want it more than I do? Well, in many ways yes.

I learned to read when I was three. Not because I was a child prodigy, but because my mother devoted herself to it. I remember living and breathing flash cards and repition. I loved it. I was good. I slept with my books, I organized my books. I LOVED my books. Reading was my life. I wanted to write early. I knew that I would be a writer. It was that simple.

I was always thinking of story ideas. I was always writing down little stories and creating characters. All the while I read like an addict. 

My desire to write had a long draught. It didn't dry up completely...but it was sparse. In those years I went to high school, worked, met my husband, had babies, stayed up all night with said babies, stressed, made snacks. Does this story sound familiar? To some of you it will. Here is the deal, during those years....I wasn't really reading. Sure I read the basics for school...The Scarlet Letter, Red Badge of Courage, Killing Mr. Griffin. While my boys were young I read the Harry Potter books as they came out. I loved them too...but I wasn't really reading for pleasure on my own all the time.  Consistently.

About three years ago, when my youngest son was three, I started reading again. Like a maniac. It was a problem, I was taking in books like I was starving. I had been. My husband was all, "What is with all this reading, the laundry hasn't been done in 2 weeks!" I wanted to tell him, "This is who I've always been!!" I'd just been dormant. (As young mothers often are.) The writing desire came back almost immediately.

IMMEDIATELY.

Funny enough, when I finally told my husband after a while that I was kinda sorta writing something. He wasn't at all surprised. It seems I had been a reader all along...I just didn't allow myself the indulgence. Life had gotten in the way.

Last night I read this in Stephen Kings On Writing.

Can I be blunt on this subject? If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.

Thoughts? I'll tell you what I thought. Stephen King was giving me permission to stop beating myself up over the fact that for years writing wasn't a priority. It didn't mean that I wanted it less, or was any less capable of being a writer. I just wasn't in the right frame of mind. I wasn't reading.

Why, as creative minds, are we always judging ourselves against others? It is a disease! More on that tomorrow.

A-Z Challange SKIPPED R - Shyness - Special Day

Yesterday was incredibly busy! I had an early morning shoot and then my youngest son had an Easter Tea at Preschool. (Then grocery shopping, community dinner...blah,blah,blah.)

But back to that Easter Tea. My youngest son is 5 and VERY shy, and self conscious. He doesn't even like to joke around too much because he gets so embarrassed. (I joke with him anyway, because he laughs and smiles before he gets angry....and he has 2 big brothers and I think he better toughen up now!)

Anyway, part of the Easter Tea was the cute little classes getting up and singing a few Easter/Spring Songs. My son had been worrying on this for days. I finally told him, "You don't have to sing, but you do have to just get up there with your class."

My thought was that once he was up there, he would be fine!

WRONG. He was stone cold silent up there. Not a hand movement, not a clap. Not a smile. In fact, his signature look in these situations is to suck his cheeks in so he doesn't smile. Because he WANTS to like it. I know he does. He's just too embarrassed to show that he likes it.

Sadly, I sort of remember being like this as a child. I didn't want to draw attention to myself AT. ALL.

Well, luckily those preschool things only last a second, so he came down to have snacks with me and all was good after he got a cheese stick and grapes. I guess the only bright side to this shyness is that he keeps him my baby a little bit longer. :)


In unrelated news, my husband is off today for Good Friday! How awesome is that? I'll take it. I'm going to take a day off from editing and just chill out at home.
It's storming out, I may make cookies. How great does that sound???

A-Z Challange ORGANIZATION

Not one of my strong points.

Actually, and my husband says this all the time, I am the QUEEN of planning, strategizing, and getting organized. It's the follow thru that gets me every stinkin time.

I come up with the most amazing solutions. Why can't I follow them? I've made myself so many "schedules" over the years.

I will say though, that I still do love a few things. I may fall off the wagon...often, but I come back to these and I think they are worth sharing.

1. Motivated Moms I love these things and I buy the new one every year. This is a chore organizational system that you purchase and then print out weekly, or daily depending on your preference. The idea is that you just do what is on the list everyday and it will cover all areas of your home keeping it perfect and clean! Each day is not hard, and there are certain things you do everyday. This is great for people like me that like to see a list and CHECK IT OFF! I also like the idea that someone has already figured out how often things need to be done and they just tell me when to do it. When I'm on a roll with this system, I love it!!! They even have one that comes with a daily bible readings if that would appeal to you. Best part? A year is cheap, $8!!

2. Steno Pads- So wonderful. I make long lists. Especially during my busy photo season. Each shoot involves a minimum of 12 different "things" I have to do. Even more if they order an album or something that needs designing. I have to keep track of these things for each client and for me the best way is a good old fashioned running list. I put everything on here, even if it's just "sign note for school". If it passes my brain, i put it down!! I am finding that I am a very forgetful person. I don't know if I'm stretched too thin, or I'm getting old but something is up. I've tried electronic, computer based organization...but no. I physically need to write it down and CROSS IT OFF. There is something very gratifying about looking at a list full of crossed off things.

Also, I don't start a new list everyday. I may write something on the list that doesn't have to be done for 2 weeks but every day I go back and look at everything that is still not crossed off and see if I can do that. I might still put it off...but I'm reminded everyday.

3. Hannah Kelley Downloads 
I found this site a couple of months ago and liked it right away. She is funny and helpful. The one thing I liked the most was her downloads! (I love me a good download!) I use the weekly food plan, the account ledger, and the kids performance log. Check them all out.

One thing I've learned though...this is a work in progress. I'm never going to be cured of my organization problems. I will always be starting over and re-cleaning a house that has been "let go". I have to accept that, which is hard for me. I want perfection from myself and I have to let it go or my frustration with myself sabotages me. anyone else relate?? I hope someone finds something here helpful!! :)

A-Z Challange LOVE

It's been a stressful couple of days round these parts. I'd like todays challange to be easy. I can't do a lot of thinking right now. (On a side note...does your wip ever leave you in a funk?? But, it's almost like you need to be there? Ok, moving on.)

Things I love.

My Husband.
My Children.
My Mother
My Sister, My Sister in law(happy early birthday!)....and all my other family.
Writing
Reading
My morning Coffemate
Roald Dahl
Annie
Fried Pickles
Traveling
History
The North and South miniseries from the 80's
Johnny Depp(it started with 21 Jumpstreet!)
Photography
Museums
Mail
Birthdays
my laptop
My bed when I've just changed the sheets
Roasted Asparagus
Shopping with no children
Good deals
blogs
meeting friends for coffee
Pad Thai...or any asian food for that matter!!
Drinking milk after something really sweet
Farmers Markets
Ratatouille
Redbox
Libraries and Bookstores
Teachers
Online bill pay
Historical romance novels
The smell of grass in spring
Vanilla
Cooking
Going to the pool
New purses


Okay, I've got a kid to get to school so I must stop. I suggest everyone stop right now and make a list like this. It felt really good. It reminds you of all the little things in your life that are really, really good.

Happy Thursday!

A-Z Challange GROWTH

It can come in so many forms can't it?

This morning I took my baby to Kindergarten Round Up. *sigh* I have mixed emotions about this. Part of me is jumping for joy at FINALLY having all of my 3 boys in school. If you have children— you know what I mean. It is quite a milestone. But it is also very sad. It's the end of something wonderful, which is, being the only major influence in your child's life.

Now, if your child is in day care they may have already experience this. But for the most part, until your child enters school...you are it! You are the one that knows it all, you are the one they turn too, you are the most important person in the world.


School brings external forces into your family. Peers, teachers, awareness, smart mouths, other view points. It kind of reminds me of sharing my writing. It's easy to spend time with only your laptop, pounding away what you are just SURE is something special. It is safe with you, in your thoughts.

When you share it, you are sending it off to school. It will encounter criticism, judgement, and you will lose a small piece of it. Somehow it will not only be yours anymore. Of course, it will always belong to you...but hopefully by encountering outside forces it will now morph, sharpen, become polished.

Hopefully...grow, into something even more amazing.

I am nervous everytime I drive to my writing group. As I hand out copies of my work I feel moronic, naieve, clueless. Seriously.  I am in Kindergarten here people. I'm learning the ropes. I'm putting myself out there, opening myself to criticism. And you know what? It is a beautiful thing. It's not safe, or easy, or secure. But it is necessary, for me to grow. That is exciting.

This August I will drive my 3rd son to school. I will walk him to his classroom while holding tightly to his tiny hand. I will be on the verge of tears every step of the way ( i already am just thinking about it.) We have had it good, him and I, these past 5 years. We are close, and inseparable. But I will tell him how awesome Kindergarten is going to be, and how fun  it will be to have new friends and his own seat. I will pray that the new people in his life will have his best interest in mind, but I will try my best to be there for him when they are not. I will more than likely be swiping back tears until I get to my car and really let go.

However, after a couple of minutes I will check my mascara, call a friend and meet for coffee...knowing that this new life of mine, and his, is going to be amazing!

A-Z Challange ~ DISH CLOTHS

Dish Cloths
Dish Rags
Kitchen Rags

Pick your poison...and I mean that literally. Consider this a public service announcement, and YES, this post is totally random!

I have a pet peeve, and it goes something like this.

Person pulls dish cloth out of the drawer and uses it to:
1. Clean the DIRTY counter
2. Do the DIRTY dishes
3. Wipe down the DIRTY stove
4. Lord knows what else...but I bet it involves DIRTY
5. PUTS IT ON THE COUNTER TO USE THE NEXT DAY!!!!

I'm sorry, I know this is my issue. But really??? Do you know what has started cultivating in that rag overnight? The fact that you may or may have not used soap does not matter. The fact that you used hot water to rinse it does not matter!

The ultimate kicker???  Remember when Grandma would do steps 1-4 and then use the damn cloth to WASH YOUR FACE?!?! OMG!? The smell was horrific. Maybe this is where that stems from. Tell me I wasn't the only one!

Happy Tuesday! :)

Spring

I have never been so ready for Spring!! It has been a very long winter here in the midwest. Long, cold and wet. With that being said, thank goodness my kids are back to school today!! Yay, Spring Break is over.

That may seem cold, but I've found the last couple of years that I am not a fan of Spring Break. It's not long enough to adapt a new routine, but it is long enough that the novelty wears off after a few days. It's just...annoying. You're kids are home, it may or may not be nice enough for them to go outside. I realize that not every parent may feel this way, but when you have three little boys under the age of 10— things can get pretty stressful. Fast.

In other news, I wrote 8600 words in the past 48 hours, and that feels good! Very good. I did a complete POV rehaul on my wip and it seems to be coming very easily, leading me to believe it was a good choice. We'll see.

Has anyone done that? I'm curious, do most writers just have a default style of writing and no matter what idea pops into their head it automatically goes to that style...or do you choose based on each individual piece? Do you try a couple and then choose?

Oh, and completely unrelated...but these new Thick and Fluffy Eggo Waffles=REALLY good if you sometimes crave that bad for you breakfast food!!

Thankful for Thursday

I decided it was important for me to participate in this meme from Oasis for YA BECAUSE I've been feeling so sorry for myself.

So, here it goes.

Today I'm thankful for the obvious, albeit very important things. A roof over my head, food, healthy (relatively speaking) children.

But, today I'm also thankful that I have many wonderful friendships in my life. Family, friends, internet friends, far away friends.

Last, but not least, I'm very thankful for my husband. He loves me even when I'm a total pain. Even when the dishes don't get done, even when I do some really ridiculous things! (There are many!) When I look at myself thru his eyes all I can see is failure...but he doesn't seem to see it...or if he does he just keeps on loving me anyway!! :) For that I'm very thankful.

Now- my body is telling me that a few more Tylenol are in order. Ugh!

Bereft of Sanity

I just received the email that there is....again.....


no. school. tomorrow.


ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!

Since Monday at 5:00 pm, it has been me, my husband and our 3 BOYS inside this house. Our house is not terribly big. Our boys are not terribly good, they are terribly terrible. I'm going insane. My house is a mess. I'm DONE!!!!!!

Send help....you might get in our driveway because my husband is wonderful and shoveled the 64 inches of snow. I definitely "less than 3" him. (tee hee hee Karen!)

In the meantime, I have discovered the most insanely amazing group since I've had uber amounts of time to peruse the internets. (My husband says he is getting a feel for what I do all day...not said in a nice way...I told him "you have no idea what you're talking about, I'm hardly ever online during the day! pssh!" (crap)

Enjoy. The Civil Wars. (psss. It's free on itunes right now or on their site www.thecivilwars.com)


The song Poison and Wine is also awesome!!

$%&@# SNOW DAY!!!

Another.
Snow Day.

Unbelievable.

The only beauty in this snow day is that my husband stayed home. We are at this very moment sitting at the kitchen table, laptop to laptop, working away. He's drinking his morning coffee, me my morning coffee mate. He can look up into my un made up face and my greasy pony tailed hair and smile at me as my kids run around shooting imaginary guns and calling each other BUTT. It's beautiful.

Is it any wonder that I love reading and writing? Taking myself away into another world? I don't think so.

Oh, and if you're wondering if I met my goal for the week you might have noticed my lack of post yesterday. That means no. :) But I'm on it today I tell ya! Sad part is due to the "snowpacalypse" the weather man keeps going on about, my crit group will more than likely be canceled tonight. WAHHHHHHHHH!!!

Manuscript Monday

I have to be accountable. From now on I'm going to give the world (or all 9 of you) an update on the state of the Manuscript every Monday morning. Right now it stands at 9,936 words. Not very much but it's getting there slowly.

I would like to write at least 100 words per day. Soooooo, that means next Monday I should be at least to 10,636. Lets see if I get there.

In other news, my kids have school today. THANK GOODNESS. I'm so sick of snow days I could lose my mind. (Did I mention I have 3 little boys?) Snow days are not conducive to writing, laundry, work, peace, enjoyment, quiet, or sanity.

p.s. i love my children more than anything! Really.

BACK!!

What a shame that I had to take a blogging hiatus when I was on such a roll. I missed it and all of you that have been joining me! :)

I was in San Antonio for a photography conference and it was so inspiring! Since my "real" job is also creative I'm struggling to find a balance between that and writing. I seem to only be able to focus on one at a time. It swings back and forth.

For example I got slow shooting at the end of the summer because it was soooo hot and used that time to become obsessed with my writing again. Then when Fall came back and I was crazy busy with work I didn't write for like 3 months almost.

I'm wondering if it is because my mind can't devote itself to two creative ventures at once, or I am just ADD and get distracted and can't balance myself.

I would like to make myself more organized and MAKE myself do a little bit of writing each day even when I'm really busy with work. My goal is to have my wip ready to query by the end of 2011...and with my business, 3 kids, a husband, a dog, 600 lbs of laundry, holidays, birthdays, family, and blah, blah, blah....I'm going to have to make myself do it!!!!!!

Anyone have anything similar??

On another note, does anyone have a running soundtrack for their novels as they're writing them?? I do...and this is a current one. Love it.