2000 Bloggers

Found this link over at Judy's blog and it's a cool idea. So, yeah, I signed up.


There are still some spots left AND you don't have to do anything else (except have your picture somewhere on your blog).

Wonder if he'll make his goal?

Also, if you have the time... Welcome to blogland my friend Gay Walker! Woo! Head on over to her pad and say howdy. She's got a lot to say and a cute kitty to boot.

Polish ' til it Shines!

Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without. ~ Confucius, Analects

They say that nobody is perfect. Then they tell you practice makes perfect. I wish they'd make up their minds. ~ Wilt Chamberlain

I think I finally have my contest entry ready to submit. The scariest thing about getting some feedback and then polishing it was this: it's a much stronger piece than it was, and it occurred to me that I should really pay the same close attention to THE ENTIRE BOOK.

Ack!

I wonder if editors and agents see the contest affliction a lot. They read the synopsis and query -- great! Request the first 50 pages or three chapters or whatever -- fantastic!! They request the full manuscript -- and it fizzles.

How many folks work and work and polish and edit and go back and do it again on their first few chapters, but don't have the energy to sustain that pace for all 300 pages?

I can understand that. I only did twenty-five (with a little help from my friends... la...la...la) and it took several days and much agonizing.

I wonder, too, as you grow as a writer -- do you get better at editing as you go? Do you become aware of your shortcomings ("that" or passive voice or run-on sentences? Yes, those are some of mine) and just pluck them out on your first run-through?

If not, then how do so many people write so well, yet so prolifically?

It's both discouraging and energizing. I'm ready to make this novel perfect. I'm so jazzed about my ending (talk to me after the contest is done... we'll see if I feel the same...LOL) that I want the entire book to be that good.

So, I guess I'm off to work on the next twenty-five pages. I wonder, if I divide the total number of pages by twenty-five and multiply the days it takes to polish each block, how long that would be? Who said you didn't need math in real life?

Have a great day! I know I will, because I get to go to Staples! I LOVE the office supply store. Seriously, I would rather shop for office supplies than clothes. I love all the little pens and pads of paper and neat little gadgets. Even though I'm only going for printer ink, I'd be willing to bet I'll walk out with something else. I have to scour the aisles, look at everything.

It's a disease. I can't wait. Why don't they open at 5 a.m.? Huh?

Hope and Dreams

When the world says, "Give up," Hope whispers, "Try it one more time." ~ Author Unknown

Excuses. The world is full of them. We all have them, for all parts of our lives.

I don't have the time. My life is too stressful. I'm not good enough.

Bull puckey.

Make the time. We all have stress. And you ARE good enough, if you think you are.

If you can dream it, really dream it, then you can find the strength to make it happen.

My husband's dreaming muscles are very small. They don't get a workout often. Last week, the Powerball was an estimated $240 million and I couldn't resist buying a ticket (yes, just one -- so my odds were 1 in 8 gazillion... is 20 in 8 gazillion really any better?).

I tried to dream with him. It took him a while to get warmed up but he decided on a big barn to house all his restored 1985 Toyota pickups and his other toys (the boats, the snowmobiles). And he dreamed about not working -- at least not for money. He talked about volunteering for somewhere like Habitat for Humanity full time. It was a start, a decent though modest beginning.

Me?

I'd like more than one home. I'm a nomad at heart, but I also like roots. So having two (or more! Hey... it's my dream) homes would be perfect.

I'd also like a private jet. Seriously, I just don't like to fly anymore. It's a pain, it's more stressful than it ever used to be, it's expensive. Ugh. So I don't really travel. But a private jet? Oh yeah. Leg room (heck, a bedroom to sleep in while you're waiting for takeoff), liquids, a clean bathroom big enough to turn around in (I had to change my DD in an airplane bathroom once -- OMG, it's funny in retrospect, but not so much then).

In all of my houses, I'd like a small theater. With movie popcorn.

I want my OWN house ... just a little cottage that I can decorate and live in any way I want. Sometimes it's hard to continually compromise with a husband. I love flowers and frills, he loves guns and mounted deer heads.

I want to be able to put my daughter into any class she wants: singing, acting, drawing, swimming, karate... whatever. And I want a limo driver to take her there.

Then... I want to sponsor homes for battered women or needy children. I want to be able to show up at the local food pantry with a years supply of food. I want to expand our library and add more reading programs for kids. I want to give the no-kill animal shelter food and blankets and toys for the critters. I'd love to build a kitty place where all the cats could run free instead of being cooped up in their kennels.

I can dream.

Unfortunately, we didn't win the Powerball. But that doesn't stop me from dreaming. If not the Powerball, then maybe I'll be the next Nora. It's close enough, and it would fulfill my other dreams.

What about you? What do you dream? Don't put limits on it -- DREAM BIG! If you can't dream it, you'll never get it.

Got My Latest Cover!

Here's the cover for "Tickle Fights and Barbecues"!



And the cover plus the blurb:



I have to tell you, the cover artist for The Wild Rose Press is wonderful. You should see the beautiful covers they have on the full length novels. Amazing!

Nightmares and Memes

“Those with the greatest awareness have the greatest nightmares.” - Mahatma Gandhi

DD woke me earlier than usual this morning -- about 3:15 a.m. She'd had a nightmare (again) about the family being kidnapped by "a very mean ghost". I snuggled up with her for a little bit until she went back to sleep, but I was awake by then, or at least my body was. My brain? Not so much.

So... since I can't think very clearly yet (I've only just started on my first cup of coffee), I give you a cheat and a meme.

FOR PET LOVERS -

To be posted VERY LOW on the refrigerator door - nose height.

Dear Dogs and Cats,

The dishes with the paw print are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Please note, placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.

The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack. Beating me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.

I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.

For the last time, there is not a secret exit from the bathroom. If by some miracle I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge and try to pull the door open. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years -- canine or feline attendance is not required.

The proper order is kiss me, then go smell the other dog or cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough!

To pacify you, my dear pets, I have posted the following message on our front door:

To All Non-Pet Owners Who Visit & Like to Complain About Our Pets:

1. They live here. You don't.
2. If you don't want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. (That's why they call it "fur"nature.)
3. I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.
4. To you, it's an animal. To me, he/she is an adopted son/daughter who is short, hairy, walks on all fours and doesn't speak clearly.

Remember: In many ways, dogs and cats are better than kids because they:
1. Eat less
2. Don't ask for money all the time
3. Are easier to train
4. Normally come when called
5. Never ask to drive the car
6. Don't hang out with drug-using friends
7. Don't smoke or drink
8. Don't have to buy the latest fashions
9. Don't want to wear your clothes
10. Don't need a "gazillion" dollars for college.

And finally,

11. If they get pregnant, you can sell their children.

And the meme from Judy:

Rules: Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following…They must be REAL places, names, things…NOTHING made up! If you can’t think of anything, skip it. Try to use different answers if the person in front of you had the same
1st initial. You CAN’T use your name for the boy/girl name question.

Your Name: Marianne


1. Famous Athlete: Mario Lemieux
2. 4 letter word: mink
3. Street name: Main
4. Color: Maroon
5. Gifts/presents: milk chocolate
6. Vehicles: Mercedes
7. Tropical Locations: Maui
8. College Majors: Medicine
9. Dairy Products: milk
10. Things in a Souvenir Shop: Mirror (?)
11. Boy Name: Michael
12. Girl Name: Marie
13. Movie Titles: March of the Penguins
14. Alcohol: Midori
15. Occupations: Model
16. Flowers: marigold
17. Celebrities: Marie Antionette
18. Magazines: Ms.
19. U.S. Cities: Mt. Aukum, CA
20. Pro Sports Teams: Magic
21. Something Found in a kitchen: Masher
22. Reason for Being Late: My alarm didn't go off
23. Something You Throw Away: milk carton
24 Things You Shout: Make Me! (LOL)
25. Cartoon Character: Mickey Mouse

Tag! You're it!

Finished?

I do not like to write - I like to have written. ~ Gloria Steinem

When you love a story you're working on, do you think about it all the time? Dream about it?

I have a short story that I wrote a couple years ago... I dreamed it, actually, from beginning to end and got up and wrote it all down. I thought it might have too many characters (it was a little reminiscent of "The Big Chill" without the body) to fly.

But, I sent to a couple (non-writer) friends to read, just for fun. Recently, one of them asked me about it. Had I submitted it anywhere?

I was startled that she still remembered it after all that time. And I decided that if it stuck with her, it must have some merit. So, I've been working on it and puttering, adding scenes, etc.

I thought I was done after a marathon writing session of two and a half hours straight yesterday. I was wrong.

Last night, as I began to doze off, I thought: Those two characters are superfluous and I can eliminate them with ease and I think I'll take out the letter.

I sometimes wonder, even when we've submitted something and it's published, is it really ever finished?

Hey! It's warming up here... it's supposed to be 27 degrees today! Woo!

Brrrr....

Winter is nature's way of saying, "Up yours." ~ Robert Byrne

It's freezing here. Actually, I think today is supposed to warm up to about 20 degrees, but the past two days? Brrrr...

It was so cold (how cold was it? - Anyone remember what that's from??) that when we fed the birds in front of WalMart (a favorite pastime - we get seagulls, pigeons and little birds that might be sparrows or starlings), they would fly over to the food and then hunker down on top of their feet to eat. One or two of the seagulls would eat standing, but they'd tuck one foot up into their belly feathers to keep it warm.

With the wind chill it was -15.

What does that have to do with anything but me complaining? My office is in our basement. Our unheated basement. Charity thoughtfully sent me her old MobilePro, but I can't seem to get my husband to make sure he knows how to get the stuff all hooked up for me to transfer the data, so I'm not ready to commit to using it when I don't know for certain I can retrieve what I write.

My basement is cold. I have a little space heater, but it doesn't work that well -- enough to keep the frostbite away, but that's about it. Sometimes I type with one hand and sit on the other one to keep it warm.

My dream is to one day have an office outside of the mushroom pit, though I do admit that it's awfully nice in the summer.

DD and DH are going ice-fishing today. Are they nuts? Brrrr.... I'm staying home and I might even go see a movie (This is a very rare happening). Anyone want to suggest a good movie that's out right now? No horror, and nothing that doesn't end happily.

I watched the "Dresden Files" last night on the Sci-Fi channel and really enjoyed it. Is it just me or does the ghost, Bob, remind you of Tim Curry? So, Tori, thanks for the viewing suggestion. As long as it doesn't get too freaky, I'll keep watching (I stopped watching "Ghost Whisperer" because of how freaky it became).

Have a great day! Since it's so toasty outside today, maybe I'll sunbathe.

Not.