Summertime fun...

The Summer Treasure Hunt is still going on, with dozens of prizes still waiting to be given away! Check out all the details here.

Coffee Time Romance is celebrating this month with June Jubilee. Each day, authors are featured and available to chat in the forums. To join the fun and enter to win some prizes, visit Coffee Time Romance. The Sweetest Romance Authors (including me) are featured today and will be chatting all day in their corner of the Java Junction.

My personal summertime fun this week is finishing up revisions on my first inspirational time travel romance manuscript (how's that for a mouthful?) and writing a synopsis for it. I'm sure that doesn't sound like much fun to most of you, but I see it as one step closer to getting it published. I still have to go through the submission process and pray it gets accepted, but I have a good feeling about this story. I'll keep you posted on any developments, such as a contract.

The other bit of summertime fun I'm enjoying this week, aside from gorgeous (if a bit hot) weather, is jumping rope and using my hula hoop. Sounds like kid stuff, right? Well, maybe it is, but that's beside the point. What is the point? I'm getting more in shape and I may have to buy a few things for my wardrobe soon. All that hula hooping is making waistbands fit more loosely. Can I get an amen for "kids" toys?

Have a great rest of the week, everyone, and don't forget to make time for your own bit of summertime fun!

I'm back!

No, I didn't really fall off the Internet, although I'm sure it seemed that way for a while. Between promotion and the general insanity I call my life, I've felt a little like Alice when she steps through the looking glass. You know, running as fast as I can just to stay in one place. Thankfully, things are slowing down a little.

I haven't just been playing in chaos, however. I've been working as diligently as possible to finish my inspirational time travel romance. It's almost done; only 1,100 words to go. I'm so excited! Of course, once I complete the manuscript, I'll have to get my beta reader to look it over and make sure there aren't any consistency issues. I've done a lot of rearranging and adding to that story, so repeated material or things appearing out of order is a very real possibility. I think I managed to keep it all straight, so hopefully my beta reader will give me a great report. If she loves the story, so much the better. :)

And now, since it's a sunny Sunday afternoon, I'm going to leave this a short post and go enjoy the rest of the day. With as many rainy days as we've had in the last couple of weeks, I plan to take advantage of the nice weather while it lasts. Have a great day!

This 'n' That

Things have been busy around here since I last posted, which is why I'm late posting this week. Here's a brief rundown of the excitement (and yes, some of it is pretty exciting!).

The most exciting piece of news is that I received a release date for Riley's Mission! My very first romantic suspense will be available from The Wild Rose Press April 7. Yes, that's a little less than a month from now, but it seems like such a long wait for my "baby" to make its debut in the world. Ah, well, I have plenty to keep me busy in the meantime, including working on more writing projects.

Which brings me to another exciting thing. I submitted a query for a sequel to Riley's Mission to my editor. Now I'm in the nail-biting, "Will she like it?" waiting period. Of course, if she likes the sound of the story, then I have to submit the manuscript and do a little more nail biting. I don't mind too much, however, since every submission brings the story one step closer to publication.

More writing-related news. I started a new job writing articles. While it can be difficult to write some of the topics, I'm enjoying the job and it works well with the odd hours I sometimes keep. What other job would allow me to work at noon or two in the morning (or both) depending on the kind of day I'm having? The people who say self-employment/freelance work is great for autistics are so right. Without the flexibility I have with this job, I wouldn't do nearly as well.

Speaking of autism, I'm still looking for guest bloggers for the month of April. If you're interested in writing a post with a positive spin on autism, you can find the details of my blogging plan for Autism Awareness Month here.

And now for the totally off-the-wall bit of news. I successfully crocheted a coat for my shih tzu. Yes, I'm now one of those people who puts clothes on her small dog. He's so adorable in his black and tan coat with a big red button on the side! I needed some way to secure the strap that goes behind his front legs, and with his penchant for getting into things when outside, the button will work better than Velcro. Why did I make a coat for him, you ask? So I can get his fur trimmed in cold weather without having to worry about him freezing when he goes outside. He's a shaggy little fella right now, and I'd like to get his usual warm-weather haircut so he looks a little more sophisticated, which if you knew my dog would make you laugh. He's like the little human boy who can get his dress clothes muddy without ever leaving his chair.

I also learned something sad in the last couple of days. I live in an affordable cotton yarn wasteland...or maybe that should be a yarn wasteland. There are precisely two yarn shops listed in my current phone book, and one of them went out of business a year or so ago. The other one is open two afternoons a week. I know there are a ton of knitters and crocheters in my area; I've met several of them and heard about many more. Where do they get their yarn? My best guess is that they either buy whatever yarn is available at the local craft stores (there are at least three that I know for sure are still in business), but I have to wonder if they order their yarn online, which is what I'm going to have to do. Out of the single yarn shop and three or so craft stores in my area, not one of them carries either of the two affordable brands of cotton yarn I'm looking for. I found a website that carries both of them, so I'm stuck paying shipping. The sad thing is, even with the shipping costs, it will still be more affordable than the only worsted weight cotton yarn I could buy locally.

All that's left to say is, Happy Friday! I hope you all have a great weekend and be sure to celebrate what's left of E-book Week with a good read. Shameless promotion alert! I happen to have two ebooks available at affordable prices. If you're looking for a quick read in the mystery genre, why not check out Light in the Darkness? Or if inspirational romance is more your style, try Dreams Do Come True.

Enjoy your weekend!

Kittens and Picture Books

Yesterday, my genius kitten tossed a plastic tumbler of iced tea to the floor and somehow managed to break out a big piece of the bottom. I still haven't found that piece. Thanks to this amazing effort by him, I briefly nicknamed him the wonder twit. By the time I finished cleaning up the puddle of tea, I'd decided that wasn't a very nice nickname, so I changed it to the wonder kitten, because it's a wonder he's making it out of kittenhood without doing serious damage to himself or anyone/anything else.

Being the writer I am, the name Sergei the Wonder Kitten got me thinking about books. The name just begs for a picture book series by the same title, and Sergei in all of his mischievous wisdom gives me plenty of fodder for stories. Thinking about basing a series of picture books on my own cat also reminded me of Jan Karon's Mitford series. In those books, the character Cynthia writes and illustrates picture books about a white cat named Violet. Of course, she replaces her pet Violet as necessary. If I do write a series about Sergei the Wonder Kitten, I'm not sure if I could ever replace the little guy with another black cat named Sergei. He's one of a kind, which is probably for the best given the mischief he gets into and creates.

So, here I am in the midst of edits on one story, three manuscripts I'm determined to rewrite, another story I'm close to typing "The End" on, and I'm thinking about writing a picture book series. Am I crazy? Of course, but I've said for years that if you're not crazy when you go into the publishing industry, you will be soon.

The real question is one I'll pose to you, the readers. If you saw a picture book series called Sergei the Wonder Kitten, would you read it to or buy it for the kids in your life? Or if you're like me and love picture books, read it for the fun of it?

New Year, New Challenges...

Happy New Year!

2009 was filled with joy and sadness, excitement and concerns. Overall, it was a good year for me, particularly in terms of writing. My first ebook, Dreams Do Come True, was published by White Rose Publishing. A few short months later, I had received my second ebook contract and Light in the Darkness was released from Sea Crest eBooks. The end of the year was particularly exciting. On Christmas Eve, I received a contract from The Wild Rose Press for my third ebook, this time a romantic suspense. Look for more information on that story (including the final title) later. On New Year's Eve, I received the first round of edits on my newly contracted story.

While I have a lot of work to do in terms of edits, what better way for an author to start a year than with a brand new contract?

So, what is my New Year's resolution? Predictably enough, it involves writing. My main resolution is to get promotion under control and planned out so it doesn't take over my life or intimidate me to the point I don't do it at all. I had both things happen in 2009, and I know it was a direct result of not getting organized. 2010 is my year to figure out a promotion plan that works for me and that I can stick to without sacrificing too much writing time. My other writing goals involve actual writing. I hope to write and publish short fiction for magazines. I also plan to work on three romantic suspense stories I have in mind (one of which is already half written!), and I am going to finish my inspirational time-travel romance. This may not sound like much to some people, but this short list is going to keep me very busy this year.

Did I meet my 2009 goals? No. I was too ambitious with them and was unable to accomplish all I had hoped to do. This year's goals may be a bit ambitious as well, but I can always adjust them later if necessary. I like having a challenge, however, and meeting my goals for 2010 will definitely challenge me.

What about you? Did you meet your 2009 goals? What goals do you have for 2010?

Bibliocat

I've always loved the idea of a bibliocat. What author wouldn't want a cat who loves books as much as she does? I've just never had the pleasure of owning one...until now.

About a week ago, I adopted the most adorable black tabby kitten. Sergei is a sweet little boy kitty, who can be ornery or cuddly, depending on how sleepy he is. He loves affection and shares it freely. Some of his favorite places to sleep are bookshelves and the book on my nightstand. He curls up in my lap when I'm writing, reading, or editing. Yes, I think this kitten may love the written word as much as his human.

As I write this post, Sergei is curled up within easy petting distance on the bookshelf right beside my computer. He has books next to him, an educational catalog underneath him, and a notebook right beside his head. I wonder what he'd write if he knew how?

A couple of years ago, I wrote a story from the perspective of a kitten. I based the thing on my memories of my last cat's kittenhood, which had ended several years before I wrote the story. Thanks to Sergei, I'm thinking about that story again and wondering where I could submit it. The little guy is proving that all of the kitten observation I did all those years ago was useful; Sergei could easily be the kitten in my story, even though it's very loosely based on a different kitten.

This all goes to show that everything is fodder for a writer, even a new kitten. My little bibliocat in training is sure to make a cameo appearance in a story at some point. I've already considered adding his fictional counterpart to one of my young adult WIPs. Since the main character loves cats, but doesn't currently have one, she's a perfect candidate for her father to surprise with a kitten. While this fictional kitten may not be a sweet little black tabby, it will undoubtedly share at least some of the same personality traits as my little Sergei. And who knows? Maybe I'll make the fictional kitten a bibliocat in the making. After all, people aren't the only ones who enjoy books.

What a weekend...

My life has been a whirlwind for the last four days, and it's not letting up yet. Thursday, I received word from Sea Crest eBooks that my newest ebook, Light in the Darkness, was released. That started a flurry of emails about promo and probably a few silly questions on my part. Sheila, you are such a sweetheart and so patient with the tons of questions I've had. Thank you for all of the help you've given me.

I spent Friday with The Sweetest Romance group in the Latte Lounge of Coffee Time Romance. We had a blast and I want to give a big thank you to everyone who stopped by, including the lurkers. I hope you guys enjoyed the chat as much as I did!

On Saturday, I worked on my blog. A huge thank you and a big hug goes to Lula for pointing me to the site where I found the new background for my blog and for the banner she so kindly created. As I've already said, Lula, you are such a sweetie! Thank you so much.

I've also been working on updates for my website the last few days. I'm hoping to have all the work done on the site next weekend, but we all know how the best laid plans can go awry. I'll keeping working toward getting the site updated next weekend anyway. :)

Sunday, I finished reading See No Evil, My Pretty Lady by Miss Mae. If you've never read this historical romantic suspense, I recommend buying a copy. The story kept me guessing all the way to the end, and when I found out the true identity of the villain, I couldn't have been more surprised. Major kudos to Miss Mae for a job well done.

Of course, not all of Sunday was great. My laptop, which is older than dirt, finally gave up the ghost. I coaxed it into working long enough to rescue all of my files, but now I'm stuck working on the desktop computer, which resides in one of the busiest rooms of my house. So much for peace and quiet while working. Hopefully I can replace the laptop soon, but we all know how expensive computers can be.

Today I'm hanging out on the Diana Kay Publishing loop and promoting Light in the Darkness in between working. I'm also participating in a couple of other promo events coming up before the end of the year, which I'll mention here as those days draw closer.

On top of all of this recent insanity, I'm in the midst of major revisions on what I hope will be a full-length novel by the time I finish, and I'm working on revising a couple of short stories. A writer's work never stops, but if it could slow down a little, the writing part would be a whole lot easier. Ah, well. Squeezing out time to write is part of the complex juggling act of life.

Everyone have a great week, and remember to make time for books(including ebooks), whether you write or just read.

Word Addiction

I know, the title of this post sounds like a no-brainer, right? Of course an author and avid reader is addicted to words. But this post isn't about my love of the written word. No, it's about another word addiction that I'm embarrassed to admit I have.

I'm addicted to "ing" words, "was," and "were."

Shameful thing for an author to admit, right? But here's the thing, like any other addiction, admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery.

How did I find out about my addiction to these words, the ones that catch an editor's eye and too occurrences of them get you a rejection? You guessed it. I received a rejection. I didn't even know I had so many "ing" words in that story until the editor told me to do a search for them and highlight them. I did, and every page came alive with color. I searched out "was" and "were" as well, highlighting them in a different color. Guess what? I suddenly had a rainbow of highlights on my pages.

Oh, that poor editor, having to suffer through my passive, "ing" filled story. I'm so grateful she pointed that out to me. Now I know what to look for: bad writing habits I thought I'd overcome. The hard part is rewriting sentences to make them much more active and remove the "ing" words. Of course, there is a silver lining to all of this. The revisions to combat my word addiction will tighten up the writing and make the story even better.

Thanks to the poor editor who had to suffer through my lazy writing, and was kind enough to tell me what I needed to work on, I see a light at the end of what likely would have been a very dark tunnel of form rejections. And not just on this story. I did the same search and highlight method on a short story I thought was almost ready to go. Same result. It makes the pages quite pretty with all those highlights, but I'd rather have the writing itself be pretty. Good writing is what keeps editors and readers happy, not how many highlights you can fit on one page.

Let's open up the comments section for a bit of writerly group therapy. Do you have a word addiction you're trying to overcome? Some bad writing habit you know you have, yet you don't seem to realize it crept into your manuscript until after you submitted?