Today, I'm off work from my day job because of President's Day, but I'm not sitting idle. Well, I'm sitting, but not idle. I'm getting my mystery, Killer Career, together to send out to my editor, Helen Ginger, plus I'm determined to make headway on my Boomer thriller, stuck at 63,000 words, when my goal is 75,000.
Not to mention, but I will anyway, I have some questions to answer at the Blog Book Tours listserv about my Ning network, Book Place, some other e-mails to answer, blogs to comment on, Twitter to control - I've gone from 664 followers to 764 in less than a week. Apparently, Twitter is the new "in" place to be.
Did I mention, it's my day to blog over at http://makeminemystery.blogspot.com ? You're more than welcome to stop there for fun stuff about turning the ordinary to scary.
Getting back to my day. Other mundane matters must be dealt with, such as the laundry, the pots and pans in the sink, the newspapers scattered around, the coats and jackets left on the rocking chair, all of which were neglected since I knew I had Monday off. Oh, and Rascal says I better take her on a long walk, because Tuesday will turn ugly weatherwise.
No problem. Everything is under control. I've got some sticky notes to remind me of what to do. I'm actually looking forward to getting things done.
What about you? How do you spend an extra day off? Do you like to keep busy or simply relax? Or, maybe sometimes you like to crash, but other times you like to dash? Please share.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Do You Celebrate Holidays on the Exact Day?
Group shot: Morgan Mandel, Debra St. John, June Sproat, Margot Justes, Sherryl Bodine, Carrie Loftus.
Valentine's Day was a busy one. After my husband and I exchanged Valentine's Day cards early Saturday morning, I was off to Step Class at the Park District, then a book signing at the Des Plaines Library, along with fellow Chicago-North RWA Chapter members.
Then came a long walk with Rascal, ending up at where else but her favorite hangout, Bentley's Corner Barkery, where we caught the tail end of their doggie Valentine's Day Party. Here's Rascal in the Kissing BoothInstead of going out to dinner for Valentine's Day, we decided to eat in, in favor of going out to an early dinner on Sunday instead. It's always so crowded at restaurants on Holidays anyway. I don't mind celebrating on another day. When you've been married a while, any day is as good as another.
What about you? Does it bother you if you don't celebrate a Holiday on the day itself? What do you do? Please share.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Give Me a Break
When I opened up the back door Friday night to let the dog out, there it was again, that dreaded white stuff I've come to hate. All I could say was, "Give me a break."
Actually, I did get a brief respite of a few days from that dreaded slippery, wet stuff. During the intermission, I thoroughly enjoyed walking the dog, walking to work and other activities I'd missed, which I couldn't do when the snow made it too difficult to travel on foot. Spring seemed so close I could almost think it had arrived.
That was before the cold, soft, flakes hit me in the face when I opened the back door. Once again, I'm dealing with what looks oh, so pretty, but doesn't act so very nice.
This dismal turn of events reminds me of a novel. The hero and/or heroine suffers through all sorts of calamities. Then, when everything appears to be okay, calamity hits with a vengeance. Wham, once again, the world is not so pretty. The only hope is that somehow everything will turn out all right at the end.
So, as an author, I put my characters through the roughest winters I can think of, I give them a short break, pile on more snow, then at the end I reward them with the wonders of Spring sunshine.
What about you? Do you like to torture your characters? Can you think of any novels where you thought all was lost, yet somehow everything turned out all right? Or, maybe, can you think of novels where you were disappointed because the author treated the characters too nicely? Please share.
Actually, I did get a brief respite of a few days from that dreaded slippery, wet stuff. During the intermission, I thoroughly enjoyed walking the dog, walking to work and other activities I'd missed, which I couldn't do when the snow made it too difficult to travel on foot. Spring seemed so close I could almost think it had arrived.
That was before the cold, soft, flakes hit me in the face when I opened the back door. Once again, I'm dealing with what looks oh, so pretty, but doesn't act so very nice.
This dismal turn of events reminds me of a novel. The hero and/or heroine suffers through all sorts of calamities. Then, when everything appears to be okay, calamity hits with a vengeance. Wham, once again, the world is not so pretty. The only hope is that somehow everything will turn out all right at the end.
So, as an author, I put my characters through the roughest winters I can think of, I give them a short break, pile on more snow, then at the end I reward them with the wonders of Spring sunshine.
What about you? Do you like to torture your characters? Can you think of any novels where you thought all was lost, yet somehow everything turned out all right? Or, maybe, can you think of novels where you were disappointed because the author treated the characters too nicely? Please share.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Undivided Attention
Undivided attention is a rarity, almost an impossibility. Right now, I'm trying to keep my mind on finishing my blog, while the DH has TV blaring in the background and the Rascal dog is gnawing noisily on her rawhide bone.
It takes some effort, but I can do this. What I find more difficult is to work on my novel under the same circumstances. When I create, I need to give my novel my undivided attention, which means a non-noisy atmosphere, maybe soft music, but not much else. On the train, if I get distracted by loud talkers when I'm creating, it also wrenches me out of the zone.
What about you? Can you create in any atmosphere? Under what circumstances do you seriously work on a manuscript? Please share.
PS Now that I have your undivided attention, if you wish to proceed, please see Little Things Mean a Lot at http://bloodredpencil.blogspot.com
It takes some effort, but I can do this. What I find more difficult is to work on my novel under the same circumstances. When I create, I need to give my novel my undivided attention, which means a non-noisy atmosphere, maybe soft music, but not much else. On the train, if I get distracted by loud talkers when I'm creating, it also wrenches me out of the zone.
What about you? Can you create in any atmosphere? Under what circumstances do you seriously work on a manuscript? Please share.
PS Now that I have your undivided attention, if you wish to proceed, please see Little Things Mean a Lot at http://bloodredpencil.blogspot.com
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