Today, I have two children sick. Nothing serious; one has a sinus issue & the smaller one is throwing up due to quick stomach virus. Yay ME~ Now, you are probably wondering what the CRAP that has to do with the title right now.... it has everything to do with it. Here's why....
I'm out of medication for the child with the sinus issue. NP!! I got this! Hubby gets up early (he works at night) and volunteers to watch both children so I can run into town for a few groceries & the medicine. Wow... that made my day better, especially since I went to bed at 10:30 last night & woke up at 1:30 in the morning with our 5 yr old... puking her eyeballs out. I go to the big chain store that I suppose I shouldn't mention due to legal reasons... but we all know who I am talking about. Uncle Sam isn't the only one we all know~ lol. I stopped by the book section (we all do~ none of us can pass up a chance to look at what we are trying to make our living at) & there is one woman standing in the section, looking at Christian romance books.
She was aimlessly walking her fingers through the pile while I was looking in the paranormal romance section but I could see her glance at me once in a while. No big deal. Everybody is curious about people in their "circle". Until she opens her mouth...
"Do you like reading those devil books?"
I looked at her with what must have been a really funny face because she repeated the question. To me. A stranger.... so I answered that yes, I do like reading them, I like to read different types of books, period.
"Hmmphf" was the answer I received for that. At that point, I don't know why, but I couldn't just LET IT GO... I mean, really, I wanted to. I tried to stay quiet. My mouth wouldn't stay SHUT.
"I write those kind of books so I tend to buy these more than any other kind."
sigh.... I knew better... I know this.
"You're gonna go to hell & take all those people with you that you are deceiving," and she stomped off.. pushing her buggy, muttering something about that store selling stuff not fit for young people to read.
OKAY, obviously that type of book wasn't her cup of tea. I get it. Many people in a smaller town where religion is not about faith, it's about a way of life in general, you are going to have that. I have tough skin so I can deal with it.
Until I check out and see the EXACT same woman in front of me, putting the last of her groceries on the belt line. And the 3 books she is buying.
Harlequin Blaze... all 3 of them were Harlequin Blaze! OH COME ON, Really??? I didn't say anything because it would have looked like I was harrassing a woman for no reason but I wanted to .. Oh, I really, really wanted to. Which brings me to my question. So far, most of my followers are writers...
What is the worst thing you have heard or have been told when you admitted you were an author?
Let me know~
Friday, August 26, 2011
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Never Write Poetry for Your Kids~
FYI~ This is NOT a mommy blog. Nothing wrong with them, but I normally don't "do" those. So, now that I have that out of the way,let's talk about poetry...
Yes, I said poetry. One of my 10 year old twin daughters came to me last night & said:
"Mom?"
"Yes?"
"Can you write me a poem?"
Now, this makes me automatically think about her homework... so, just in case:
"Why? Is it for school?"
"No, you just haven't written anything for me in a while, like stories & stuff. I just wanted to see if you would write me a poem."
Ok, I'm happywith this; I have written them stories & poetry their entire life. The guilt trip is excellently applied, so of course, I reply:
"Ok, sure... when ya want it?"
"Now would be great... can I watch you?"
Seriously. She wanted me to magically pull a poem out of my writer's hat then & there. Being a mom, I said ok. Sigh.... In 10 MINUTES (mind you, she is watching me with that weird hawk look that kids get when they want something...you KNOW the one I am talking about) I have written a poem for her. No, it wasn't long.. but I thought it was nice. It showed love, heartfelt feelings. blah blah blah. Here it is in all it's wonderful short (10 minutes I remind you) glory.
Balance
Time stands still as I look upon your beautiful face
My love is instant and unfaltering
You are my life, my love, my everything
No other line holds me except your own
Your cry fills my heart with joy... and sadness
For I know you will meet pain and sorrow
Yet the happiness you will find makes it worthwhile
And that makes my life complete
You bring me love and tears
Happiness as well as sadness
This, my child, is proof...
Balance within a soul is brought simply by..
our children
I, personally, don't think I did too shabby of a job... for a 10 minute poem for my CHILD. And her words?.... wait for it....
"Can't you write me something funny to show my friends?"
I told her to go find a Dr. Suess book & study it.... sigh.... I love my children~ such balance to my life.
Yes, I said poetry. One of my 10 year old twin daughters came to me last night & said:
"Mom?"
"Yes?"
"Can you write me a poem?"
Now, this makes me automatically think about her homework... so, just in case:
"Why? Is it for school?"
"No, you just haven't written anything for me in a while, like stories & stuff. I just wanted to see if you would write me a poem."
Ok, I'm happywith this; I have written them stories & poetry their entire life. The guilt trip is excellently applied, so of course, I reply:
"Ok, sure... when ya want it?"
"Now would be great... can I watch you?"
Seriously. She wanted me to magically pull a poem out of my writer's hat then & there. Being a mom, I said ok. Sigh.... In 10 MINUTES (mind you, she is watching me with that weird hawk look that kids get when they want something...you KNOW the one I am talking about) I have written a poem for her. No, it wasn't long.. but I thought it was nice. It showed love, heartfelt feelings. blah blah blah. Here it is in all it's wonderful short (10 minutes I remind you) glory.
Balance
Time stands still as I look upon your beautiful face
My love is instant and unfaltering
You are my life, my love, my everything
No other line holds me except your own
Your cry fills my heart with joy... and sadness
For I know you will meet pain and sorrow
Yet the happiness you will find makes it worthwhile
And that makes my life complete
You bring me love and tears
Happiness as well as sadness
This, my child, is proof...
Balance within a soul is brought simply by..
our children
I, personally, don't think I did too shabby of a job... for a 10 minute poem for my CHILD. And her words?.... wait for it....
"Can't you write me something funny to show my friends?"
I told her to go find a Dr. Suess book & study it.... sigh.... I love my children~ such balance to my life.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Hotness In The Hero Making
Ok, so I have noticed one major factor that most romance writers talk about. In fact, most of us tend to make our heros look vaguely familar at some point or another. Whether it's to an actor, singer or the man next door, we all do it. We look at the hotness level & apply it to our books. Here are my hotties, in no particular order:
Now, Gerard Butler... mmm. no words for that one except wow! Orlando Bloom? No matter what he plays in, those dark eyes pull you into a sensual haze that you never want to leave. And Ryan Reynolds... Not only could his abs keep us busy for days, but his sense of humor & even better arms would keep us going like the energizer bunny.
However, there is one more who is my number one hottie. He is the man that Mason Steele (from my sequel, Crossing Steele) is based on in his hotness:
Now, Gerard Butler... mmm. no words for that one except wow! Orlando Bloom? No matter what he plays in, those dark eyes pull you into a sensual haze that you never want to leave. And Ryan Reynolds... Not only could his abs keep us busy for days, but his sense of humor & even better arms would keep us going like the energizer bunny.
However, there is one more who is my number one hottie. He is the man that Mason Steele (from my sequel, Crossing Steele) is based on in his hotness:
Nathan Fillion
Really, this man not only had me drooling in Serenity but Castle will NEVER be missed. EVER. lol So, who are your hotties? You know you have em' so come on... leave me a note and tell me who they are. Man, woman~ it doesn't matter... who are your hotties that you imagine for your books?
Monday, August 22, 2011
Finding Inspiration
In the dictionary, inspiration means: stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity.
This, I think, is one of the miracles/curses of writing. Where do you get inspiration? Does it just come naturally to a writer so that they can write perfection? Umm... right. Does it come to you in dreams?(hey, it worked for Stephanie Meyers. We can only hope to have her type of success!) Or maybe, just maybe, it comes to you looking out a window seeing the gardener bend over, showing off his horrible fashion sense (I won't mention the shiny body part you see from this) as he picks up the rake he dropped to scratch his very big, jolly belly... Christmas is coming ya know..
I actually get my inspiration in two places for the most part. The first place is the shower. Yeah, I know, it's weird... But actually, a LOT of writers get their ideas from the shower. It clears the airs (so to speak) and allows you to think, to day dream. A Fire Within was born in the shower. It's funny because one of my twin daughters had walked into the bathroom while I was in the shower. Of course, my five year old daughter follows right behind to ask what she is doing.
"I'm looking for my hair brush, duh!"
My 5 yr old... "What's it look like?"
Peggy : "Like this~ seeeee?"
Now, as I am hearing the conversation, remember that I am in the shower. We have a light brown curtain that has a 1ft line of clear plastic on top. It's foggy (yes, I like them super hot lol) so all I can see in the curtain is Peggy's shadow, with said hairbrush, bringing it up & down like the psycho movie. (No, she wasn't hitting her little sister I promise!) Of course, I get tickled, then they get tickled and leave me to finish my shower in relative peace. (with 3 girls, that is an oxy-moron) Thinking of the pyscho made my brain switch to serial killers which sent me down another path, etc.. lol. You see where I am going with this. Showers are great entertainment and inspiring~ : )
My second way of inspiration is horseback riding. My husband and I are redoing our fence line so we won't be able to have horses on our property until next spring. This is fine; I ride over at my mother's house since they have 6... one of which her & my dad just gave me (& the kids lol). It gives me a sense of peace, of complete happiness to go ride for a few hours. We trail ride often or might just take off down the off roads that she lives on. Honestly, it doesn't matter, as long as I am on the back of a horse I am pretty much happy. This is how I worked out Crossing Steele, the sequel to A Fire Within. Over the summer, I have thrown away sheet after sheet of nothing.. nada.... horse poo. I left the idea of a sequel alone for about a week and went riding. I needed to clear my head completely because all I could think of was "Everybody is gonna HATE the book". It's the first book-everybody thinks that. So I went riding and I see all these beautiful trees, the grass that is so tall, it brushes your boots as you ride through it. (BTW, the man doesn't know we went through his field, so umm.... SSHHHH! That's our secret~) And that's when it hit me. The sequel popped in my head with such clarity that I felt I was good to go.
So, those are my inspirations to write. What are yours? What gives you the urge to write stories or poetry? What gets you up in the mornings- ready for whatever the day brings? Come on, I shared mine... lol. Share yours~
Thursday, August 18, 2011
CONTEST BLOG
Okay, so technically, today is not Friday. In my defense, I am so vamped for this contest that I just couldn't wait any longer. The blog has been in my head for two days, twirling around with all the other mad little ideas and it needed to be let out of the cage. Here we go..... da da dahhhhhh~
First off, this is an easy contest. There are only 2 requirements and both of those are easy.
1. Follow my BLOG.
2. Leave a comment answering the question in this blog.
Leaving me a comment saying "hi" doesn't count (although I love those and love when people talk to me... I am a very social creature). I am nosy... I wanna know what you think...
On Sunday evening at 6pm (central time) I will randomly pick 2 people to win a free copy of my debut book, A Fire Within. I will be using www.random.org for this so, trust me, it's more random than I am! lol At 7pm ~ I will announce the winner and send you a msg with the link to www.smashwords.com with a code that gives you a free book. That's it~ so are you ready? Let's get to it then....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today's blog is on ghosts. Whether you believe in them or not, all of us have had a "spooky" moment at some point in our lives. Something has been moved from where you laid it down or maybe, out of the corner of your eye, you saw something cross the room. Have your dogs/cats been staring at the corner lately, growling softly or whining at the no-see-ums that have taken up residence there? Or was it the monster under your bed that would keep you awake for hours before it was time to go to school?
For some background info, I live in the same house I grew up in. My grandmother (who raised me) left it & all the property to me when she passed away and now, my family & I live in it. We are planning on building an underground house within the next 3 years so this works out great for us while we clean off the land. (Yes, I did say underground.. we have lots of hills here and more tornados than I care to admit to. They are beautiful, do have windows and are damn near tornado proof.. and I would love to live like the fairies in Ireland.. nuff' said) :) I know we have ghosts in our house. You can hear them walking through the house at odd times and have even seen a few of them walking around, both day & night. I am used to this because I was raised in this house for 18 years before moving out on my own. My husband? He believed in them... he was just a little surprised at the amount of activity in this house. lol
This brings me to my question you have to answer.
What is your favorite ghost "moment"?
Now, I have to poke a little bit of fun at my wonderful sister-in-law here. My absolute FAVORITE ghost moment happened while she lived with us for a short period of time. She was in hair salon school (she is AWESOME by the way) & had moved in with us. I will not go into the details of why the "ghost" or "entity" (whatever word fits here, you can fill in the blank) got mad at her but ,WOW, it was not happy! Almost every morning, her room would be destroyed. I don't mean the usual "single person" mess. I'm talking drawers would be pulled out of her dresser with clothes partially hanging out. I'm talking shoes pulled out from under her bed. The light being turned on after it was off... after she had gotten in bed. And the lights? It was actually moved from "OFF" to the "ON" postion.
She now refuses to spend the night in our house. Ever.... When she comes over, footsteps can be heard in our hallway, walking up and down the corrider. Of course, it doesn't do anything to her, or to us... it just lets her know it still isn't happy with her. lol... It's very funny to watch her face before she leaves the house.
He/She/They don't bother us at all and we have no interest in getting rid on anyone. They are a GREAT conversation starter at times (especially when the lights flicker) so what about YOU? Please, don't make something up~ be honest. Even if you don't believe in little wee ghosties, tell about an "odd" experience that has happened to you. And, don't forget, I announce the winner on Sunday @ 7pm here and I will msg the winners~ Good LUCK~~
First off, this is an easy contest. There are only 2 requirements and both of those are easy.
1. Follow my BLOG.
2. Leave a comment answering the question in this blog.
Leaving me a comment saying "hi" doesn't count (although I love those and love when people talk to me... I am a very social creature). I am nosy... I wanna know what you think...
On Sunday evening at 6pm (central time) I will randomly pick 2 people to win a free copy of my debut book, A Fire Within. I will be using www.random.org for this so, trust me, it's more random than I am! lol At 7pm ~ I will announce the winner and send you a msg with the link to www.smashwords.com with a code that gives you a free book. That's it~ so are you ready? Let's get to it then....
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today's blog is on ghosts. Whether you believe in them or not, all of us have had a "spooky" moment at some point in our lives. Something has been moved from where you laid it down or maybe, out of the corner of your eye, you saw something cross the room. Have your dogs/cats been staring at the corner lately, growling softly or whining at the no-see-ums that have taken up residence there? Or was it the monster under your bed that would keep you awake for hours before it was time to go to school?
For some background info, I live in the same house I grew up in. My grandmother (who raised me) left it & all the property to me when she passed away and now, my family & I live in it. We are planning on building an underground house within the next 3 years so this works out great for us while we clean off the land. (Yes, I did say underground.. we have lots of hills here and more tornados than I care to admit to. They are beautiful, do have windows and are damn near tornado proof.. and I would love to live like the fairies in Ireland.. nuff' said) :) I know we have ghosts in our house. You can hear them walking through the house at odd times and have even seen a few of them walking around, both day & night. I am used to this because I was raised in this house for 18 years before moving out on my own. My husband? He believed in them... he was just a little surprised at the amount of activity in this house. lol
This brings me to my question you have to answer.
What is your favorite ghost "moment"?
Now, I have to poke a little bit of fun at my wonderful sister-in-law here. My absolute FAVORITE ghost moment happened while she lived with us for a short period of time. She was in hair salon school (she is AWESOME by the way) & had moved in with us. I will not go into the details of why the "ghost" or "entity" (whatever word fits here, you can fill in the blank) got mad at her but ,WOW, it was not happy! Almost every morning, her room would be destroyed. I don't mean the usual "single person" mess. I'm talking drawers would be pulled out of her dresser with clothes partially hanging out. I'm talking shoes pulled out from under her bed. The light being turned on after it was off... after she had gotten in bed. And the lights? It was actually moved from "OFF" to the "ON" postion.
She now refuses to spend the night in our house. Ever.... When she comes over, footsteps can be heard in our hallway, walking up and down the corrider. Of course, it doesn't do anything to her, or to us... it just lets her know it still isn't happy with her. lol... It's very funny to watch her face before she leaves the house.
He/She/They don't bother us at all and we have no interest in getting rid on anyone. They are a GREAT conversation starter at times (especially when the lights flicker) so what about YOU? Please, don't make something up~ be honest. Even if you don't believe in little wee ghosties, tell about an "odd" experience that has happened to you. And, don't forget, I announce the winner on Sunday @ 7pm here and I will msg the winners~ Good LUCK~~
Monday, August 15, 2011
What Is Your Favorite Paranormal Type?
Okay~ we ALL have a favorite. You know it... I know it... the people who pretend they don't? They know it too... they just stay in the closet with their favorite characters. lol So... what is your personal favorite paranormal hottie?
Is it the vampire with the hot, demanding eyes that seem to burn into your soul, begging for you to say yes to him?
Or maybe the shifter that can't seem to control himself around you because you are his mate and he is ready to claim you for his own?
I know! It's the ghost that has waited for you to come to him for hundreds of years. Just waiting for you to love him again so that somehow, someway, he can materialize again into flesh & blood to be with you...
Personally, I like them all. Hey, if you are gonna drool, I think you should have a variety pack to look over, just sayin'.... But, if I had to choose just one, I would have to go with vampire. Or maybe one of the underworld minions that seem to do all the dirty work for the head Gods that, once you are mated with them, will love you forever.. and keep you hot, bothered & safe... ish. Now, I do want them to have some backbone though~ none of this "oh, I shouldn't be with you b/c I might hurt you" stuff. I'm sorry but, if your hero has lived for a couple of hundred years and hasn't managed to be killed yet... this means he has definitely learned restraint and should be "no holds barred" at this point. (Which is why I am a serious Damon fan and NOT a Stefan fan in the Vampire Diaries...lol no goody two shoes for this vamp girl!)
Okay, enough about my wishes.. what about yours? Tell me what is your favorites and don't forget: starting August 21, I will be having a contest for 2 free copies of my book. Get your friends to follow my blog so they can see the rules of the contest (like that's hard... they only have to post a comment lol~ I don't like complicated~) and since, at the moment, I only have 5 followers... it would be kind of embarrassing if I don't get a few more people in here. lol~ I will post everything on Friday so be ready.. be prepared... be here for GHOSTS.
Is it the vampire with the hot, demanding eyes that seem to burn into your soul, begging for you to say yes to him?
Or maybe the shifter that can't seem to control himself around you because you are his mate and he is ready to claim you for his own?
I know! It's the ghost that has waited for you to come to him for hundreds of years. Just waiting for you to love him again so that somehow, someway, he can materialize again into flesh & blood to be with you...
Personally, I like them all. Hey, if you are gonna drool, I think you should have a variety pack to look over, just sayin'.... But, if I had to choose just one, I would have to go with vampire. Or maybe one of the underworld minions that seem to do all the dirty work for the head Gods that, once you are mated with them, will love you forever.. and keep you hot, bothered & safe... ish. Now, I do want them to have some backbone though~ none of this "oh, I shouldn't be with you b/c I might hurt you" stuff. I'm sorry but, if your hero has lived for a couple of hundred years and hasn't managed to be killed yet... this means he has definitely learned restraint and should be "no holds barred" at this point. (Which is why I am a serious Damon fan and NOT a Stefan fan in the Vampire Diaries...lol no goody two shoes for this vamp girl!)
Okay, enough about my wishes.. what about yours? Tell me what is your favorites and don't forget: starting August 21, I will be having a contest for 2 free copies of my book. Get your friends to follow my blog so they can see the rules of the contest (like that's hard... they only have to post a comment lol~ I don't like complicated~) and since, at the moment, I only have 5 followers... it would be kind of embarrassing if I don't get a few more people in here. lol~ I will post everything on Friday so be ready.. be prepared... be here for GHOSTS.
Friday, August 12, 2011
So~ for the past few days I have been writing, revising, redoing Amazon (we won't discuss the words I used for THAT little project.. but it included lots of coffee and evil looks... & possibly a house falling on it's evilness). I'm thinking that for all my efforts.. today I am going to just do a shameless plug of my book! lol I am pitiful.. I know this. In my defense, I am new to this and must rely on not only the pity date possiblity but the hope you will like it and pass me around like the magazine with the hottest gossip!
Her eyes glazed over with rage as she thought of nothing but revenge; never noticing her surroundings as several items began to levitate and circle the room. All Rayna could see was their obscured faces in the bright light above her. She groaned aloud as the rotted faces of the women appeared before her eyes. Blown away in the explosion, beyond recognition by the same men who murdered them. The pain and suffering the unknown families would surely be feeling flooded Rayna's senses, overloading her entirely. Lights began flickering throughout the house as her emotional overload frantically searched for release.
As the lights flickered, Chase ran to Rayna's bedroom. The alarms tripped as the house began shaking roughly.
"An earthquake? What the hell?" He reached her door, trying to turn the handle. It wouldn't budge… no matter how hard he pushed. He yelled for her, trying to get her to open the door. Jeez, it sounded as if a storm was raging inside the bedroom. He could hear wind building louder until it became a loud roar. Pushing himself almost into the opposite wall, Chase shoved himself into the door, both mentally and physically. It gave, just enough for him to wedge his body into the room.
What he saw scared the crap out of him. He flattened himself against the wall so he wouldn't be hit by the swirling objects. A vase whizzed by his head, before rejoining the rest. It looked almost like a tornado, full of bedroom furniture, jerking with every emotional cry that Rayna gave. Chase had never seen this type of power before… not ever. He scanned the swirling mass for any sharp objects
before slowly making his way towards her. As calmly as he could, he reached out, trying to get her attention mentally.
"Rayna? It's me, Chase. Just me, honey. I need you to…" He watched as the television swung in his direction before slipping to the floor. It was still moving towards him so he moved slightly forward, sidestepping the tv. He continued talking quietly to Rayna, watching the storm slow down.
"Rayna please, I need you to calm yourself. Concentrate on me; focus on me. Rayna- look at me!" He yelled, ducking below a lamp as it passed by his head.
"What have I done?"
Her body went limp in his - she had fainted, her body exhausted, her power drained.
Rayna Daniels is a woman marked for death. To escape the horrible fate two serial killers have planned for her, she finds herself depending on the unique assistance and protection of Detective Chase Stone. Though her own abilities are powerful, Rayna and Chase learn that only together can they defeat the killers and find the fire within each other.
EXCERPT:
As the lights flickered, Chase ran to Rayna's bedroom. The alarms tripped as the house began shaking roughly.
"An earthquake? What the hell?" He reached her door, trying to turn the handle. It wouldn't budge… no matter how hard he pushed. He yelled for her, trying to get her to open the door. Jeez, it sounded as if a storm was raging inside the bedroom. He could hear wind building louder until it became a loud roar. Pushing himself almost into the opposite wall, Chase shoved himself into the door, both mentally and physically. It gave, just enough for him to wedge his body into the room.
What he saw scared the crap out of him. He flattened himself against the wall so he wouldn't be hit by the swirling objects. A vase whizzed by his head, before rejoining the rest. It looked almost like a tornado, full of bedroom furniture, jerking with every emotional cry that Rayna gave. Chase had never seen this type of power before… not ever. He scanned the swirling mass for any sharp objects
before slowly making his way towards her. As calmly as he could, he reached out, trying to get her attention mentally.
"Rayna? It's me, Chase. Just me, honey. I need you to…" He watched as the television swung in his direction before slipping to the floor. It was still moving towards him so he moved slightly forward, sidestepping the tv. He continued talking quietly to Rayna, watching the storm slow down.
"Rayna please, I need you to calm yourself. Concentrate on me; focus on me. Rayna- look at me!" He yelled, ducking below a lamp as it passed by his head.
Rayna's eyes snapped towards his, locking onto his face. She gasped as she came out of her rampage; jumping in shock as everything fell crashing to the floor around her. She took a step back as Chase reached for her. Just in time, he wrapped his arms around her waist as Rayna whispered in horror.
"What have I done?"
Her body went limp in his - she had fainted, her body exhausted, her power drained.
~~~~~~~~OKAY~ so I hope you liked the little piece I gave you. If you do, then please pass it around and have all your friends catch my blog or, better yet, buy the novella and let me know what you think. It is currently for sale at amazon and smashwords and, within two weeks, will be at sony, apple, diesel, and barnes and noble. Tell me your thoughts about this below~ I would love to hear comments!
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Learning Things The Hard Way
On August 14th, my first book will have been on sale for a month. That, by itself, is great! It's wonderful! It's TERRIFYING. Why? Because of the assumption that I (please tell me LOTS of others do this) made about writing. Writing an e-book is totally DIFFERENT than writing a manuscript. I didn't think that was true at first. It is. Anybody who tells you it is NOT? Yeah, they also have an oasis in Egypt, compete with almonds and fans, just for you. For a steal! lol
All joking aside, I thought that the writing was the hard part. I know I mentioned this in my first blog, but it is worth repeating. Writing is easy-- the promotion is hard. HARD HARD HARD. I thought that anyway. I have found something worse. It's called html. Or maybe it was mobi. No, I remember now.. it is EMBEDDING.
Now, I can make my way around a computer for the most part. I know how to use Word, Works, Open Office, etc... Copy/Paste? Sure, we are besties! Links? Yep, like the back of my hand. Embed? I thought I had gotten out of bed already. Wait- does that mean I am helping a criminal? Oh God, now the cops ARE gonna be after me and not because I took the last donut before the shop closed yesterday. Obviously I do not know code *stuff* . I did not take a computer class on how to make cover art (oh wait.. that's falls under graphics... that's a totally different blog subject) or how to make programs. Html looks like my youngest child got my laptop again and had fun with the keys. Do I need to go back to college?
No- I am going to go to the bookstore this weekend and find the best book in the world for computer illiterates like myself.... Html for dummies. Not the name? Hmmm, I will find it. Hopefully it can explain why I can't make the kindle version look NORMAL, no matter how many times I tried to fix it. lol (I have now taken it off just so I can try to redo it. I don't want people buying ugly formatted stuff that makes me look bad.) If it can't be professional-looking then I just proved the whole point of Indies not making on their own. And they can... and they DO. Everyday...
Now if I can just find my wizard's hat to turn the pumpkin back into a book....
All joking aside, I thought that the writing was the hard part. I know I mentioned this in my first blog, but it is worth repeating. Writing is easy-- the promotion is hard. HARD HARD HARD. I thought that anyway. I have found something worse. It's called html. Or maybe it was mobi. No, I remember now.. it is EMBEDDING.
Now, I can make my way around a computer for the most part. I know how to use Word, Works, Open Office, etc... Copy/Paste? Sure, we are besties! Links? Yep, like the back of my hand. Embed? I thought I had gotten out of bed already. Wait- does that mean I am helping a criminal? Oh God, now the cops ARE gonna be after me and not because I took the last donut before the shop closed yesterday. Obviously I do not know code *stuff* . I did not take a computer class on how to make cover art (oh wait.. that's falls under graphics... that's a totally different blog subject) or how to make programs. Html looks like my youngest child got my laptop again and had fun with the keys. Do I need to go back to college?
No- I am going to go to the bookstore this weekend and find the best book in the world for computer illiterates like myself.... Html for dummies. Not the name? Hmmm, I will find it. Hopefully it can explain why I can't make the kindle version look NORMAL, no matter how many times I tried to fix it. lol (I have now taken it off just so I can try to redo it. I don't want people buying ugly formatted stuff that makes me look bad.) If it can't be professional-looking then I just proved the whole point of Indies not making on their own. And they can... and they DO. Everyday...
Now if I can just find my wizard's hat to turn the pumpkin back into a book....
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Funny Things You Type On The Internet
I love being online. In fact, I stay on it constantly (trying to remember to put up the laundry at SOME point in the day... or clean the dishes lol) to promote my first book, get the word out, etc... But I love to LOOK at *stuff*. Facebook comments, myspace comments( although I haven't even been to that in over 2 years... do people still use myspace?) and blogs. I love blogs. Which brings me to security spam codes.
Ok~ we all have to do this on the internet. We find funny things that we have to comment on. Or there is a blog that absolutely ROCKS and we must follow it... After typing in your comment, joke, hilarious smilies EVERYWHERE - there it is. The security code. Now, I KNOW that the codes are computer generated. I KNOW there is not a person somewhere on the other end making these up. But, at some point, you would think there had to have been a person installing some type of dictionary. No? Then they definitely installed a great sense of humor!
Take one of my favorite blogs. Erica Dean has a great and funny blog that I recently came across and have started following it. She is super funny so I have to comment... when I remember to hit the send button (which is difficult for me for some reason...?). My security code that I have to type in order to prove I am not a spammer intent on destroying the cyber universe? wait for it... wait for it...
az ass
You can't tell me there isn't a little person (probably wearing green and sitting on a pot of gold somewhere) laughing his rear off at this? I did... for 2 minutes I actually cried, I was laughing that hard.
Or how about another blog from 2 weeks ago on yahoo... are you ready?
but2 corkz
I swear I cannot make this up. Even I draw the line at some point on insanely funny, yet, bad bar humor. I want to meet the person who came up with this idea and shake his/her hand. They have given me much joy ever since we started seeing those codes.... I'm off to find another one! If you have any codes that you remember as being funny, stupid, etc.. feel free to post them on the comments~
As a shout out to Erica, you should read her blog because she is hilarious! lol You can find her here:
http://networkedblogs.com/lnLwt
Ok~ we all have to do this on the internet. We find funny things that we have to comment on. Or there is a blog that absolutely ROCKS and we must follow it... After typing in your comment, joke, hilarious smilies EVERYWHERE - there it is. The security code. Now, I KNOW that the codes are computer generated. I KNOW there is not a person somewhere on the other end making these up. But, at some point, you would think there had to have been a person installing some type of dictionary. No? Then they definitely installed a great sense of humor!
Take one of my favorite blogs. Erica Dean has a great and funny blog that I recently came across and have started following it. She is super funny so I have to comment... when I remember to hit the send button (which is difficult for me for some reason...?). My security code that I have to type in order to prove I am not a spammer intent on destroying the cyber universe? wait for it... wait for it...
az ass
You can't tell me there isn't a little person (probably wearing green and sitting on a pot of gold somewhere) laughing his rear off at this? I did... for 2 minutes I actually cried, I was laughing that hard.
Or how about another blog from 2 weeks ago on yahoo... are you ready?
but2 corkz
I swear I cannot make this up. Even I draw the line at some point on insanely funny, yet, bad bar humor. I want to meet the person who came up with this idea and shake his/her hand. They have given me much joy ever since we started seeing those codes.... I'm off to find another one! If you have any codes that you remember as being funny, stupid, etc.. feel free to post them on the comments~
As a shout out to Erica, you should read her blog because she is hilarious! lol You can find her here:
http://networkedblogs.com/lnLwt
The Funny Thing About Cats
First off, my family has quite a few pets. We currently have 2 dogs, 2 cats, 2 fish and I lost count of the amount of chickens we have. Next spring, we plan on adding goats and hogs to the family. lol~ No, I am not kidding and, yes, we do own lots of property. Seventy-three acres in fact that is home to lots of beautiful animals… that love to eat my garden. No offense intended, but, since I have a husband who loves to hunt, this isn’t much of an issue for us.
Our cats are funny though. At the moment I have our black cat (Shadow) looking over my shoulder as I type. Within a few minutes, I will be yelling at her as she lands on my laptop, merrily chasing the mouse on my screen as I try to stop her pretty (read HUGE here) paw from hitting the “publish” button. She will smirk ( who makes up that kind of word? Honestly?) and walk off… only to be pounced on by our other cat, Cookie. Now, Cookie is a black/white cat who is only 9 months old. Still a kitten really. Shadow is already 7 years old~ set in her ways and has every intention of staying there… no matter what Cookie does to her. But still, Shadow does get in a few good licks. Just the other day she waited, lying still as if she were in her normal state (read snoring in her sleep), as Cookie slipped by. I don’t know if she were intentionly sneaking past to do something or if she was just doing a walk-by ( drive-by… just slower). Regardless, Shadow jumps over & on top of Cookie in a surprise sneak attack that, not only catches Cookie by compete surprise, it surprised the dogs as well~ who proceeded to run to the bedroom and wake up daddy( My husband who works at night… did I mention this was 10:30 am and he had only been asleep since 9 am? No? Sorry about that). So now he has 2 dogs jumping on the bed, barking hysterically that a cat fight ( that doesn’t include hair pulling or jello) is in process and all my kids and I can do is laugh.
Cookie was now on top of the washing machine, tail swishing in plot mode, as Shadow merrily walked away happily. Until the washer went to spin cycle and scared Cookie so bad she went straight up into the air, fur standing straight up and landing on the floor 3 ft away….
I love my cats~ lol
Our cats are funny though. At the moment I have our black cat (Shadow) looking over my shoulder as I type. Within a few minutes, I will be yelling at her as she lands on my laptop, merrily chasing the mouse on my screen as I try to stop her pretty (read HUGE here) paw from hitting the “publish” button. She will smirk ( who makes up that kind of word? Honestly?) and walk off… only to be pounced on by our other cat, Cookie. Now, Cookie is a black/white cat who is only 9 months old. Still a kitten really. Shadow is already 7 years old~ set in her ways and has every intention of staying there… no matter what Cookie does to her. But still, Shadow does get in a few good licks. Just the other day she waited, lying still as if she were in her normal state (read snoring in her sleep), as Cookie slipped by. I don’t know if she were intentionly sneaking past to do something or if she was just doing a walk-by ( drive-by… just slower). Regardless, Shadow jumps over & on top of Cookie in a surprise sneak attack that, not only catches Cookie by compete surprise, it surprised the dogs as well~ who proceeded to run to the bedroom and wake up daddy( My husband who works at night… did I mention this was 10:30 am and he had only been asleep since 9 am? No? Sorry about that). So now he has 2 dogs jumping on the bed, barking hysterically that a cat fight ( that doesn’t include hair pulling or jello) is in process and all my kids and I can do is laugh.
Cookie was now on top of the washing machine, tail swishing in plot mode, as Shadow merrily walked away happily. Until the washer went to spin cycle and scared Cookie so bad she went straight up into the air, fur standing straight up and landing on the floor 3 ft away….
I love my cats~ lol
First Blog ( aka- Breaking the Ice)
So this is a first for me… seriously. You would think that after writing the actual book, getting all the hard work done in publishing & promoting it, things like this would be easy for me. Yeah, right! I don’t normally write about myself so bear with me,please. I suppose I should start off with something about me so…. let’s dive into the scary mind of… ME.
I have always loved to write, ever since I was little. I would write scary stories, mystery stories, even romance stories (not that I knew what it really was~ my happiest moment was making them hold hands!). I didn’t get serious about writing though until my 7th grade English teacher had the entire class write a poem. Since poetry is actually something I really enjoy doing, I dove right in and didn’t think twice about turning it in. She loved it. In fact, she stayed on my case until I finally gave in, showing her some of my stories and other poetry. She ended up talking me into writing for the school newspaper~ just to write short stories or poetry to fill in space. It probably sounded silly to most of the kids, but, hey, I was hooked.
Life tends to get in the way of dreams though and mine did. I met my husband who has given me 3 beautiful girls and they kept me busy for the past 10 years. My kids loved the little stories I wrote them (this is how they learned to read as well as they do, lol) and would ask me why I didn’t write my very own book. Even my husband would ask why I didn’t start. I played with the idea, even wrote a few beginnings until, finally, I decided to finish one. That was the hardest part… or so I thought! It’s not, of course. I researched the traditional ways of publishing through houses and I was disappointed to see what royalties an author got… if they were lucky enough to get accepted. That’s when I decided to self-publish. Granted, it’s much harder to do but I worked at it, finding someone (Tristan Duplichain who is the BEST in the world) for my cover art, for editing (Mrs. Galloway~ you rock the house) and lots of nightmares of hitting the final button. The PUBLISH NOW? button. THAT, my friends, is the hardest thing you will ever do. EVER. SERIOUSLY…. The terror of hitting that button, of people having the actual ability to say whether or not my book was good, bad, or should be burnt and never seen by human eyes again? OMG I thought I would have nightmares forever.
So now it’s been out a few weeks. A FIRE WITHIN has sold better than I first thought it would (not that I don't think it's good... but let's face it- a self-publishing author with no experience? lol) and I even have great (5 star) reviews. I’m still in shock over that part. I keep waiting for the other shoe to fall but when it does, I will know two things. First, my family loves me, appreciates me & stands by my side in support… second, no matter how much people may love or hate my book? I finished it. I published it. I sweated over it. I am proud of my first book and already am writing the sequel to it. So my advice to you? Don’t throw away your dreams. Plan it, research it, do it & never give up on it. Because no matter what anyone else says, you are the only one who can make it happen.
I have always loved to write, ever since I was little. I would write scary stories, mystery stories, even romance stories (not that I knew what it really was~ my happiest moment was making them hold hands!). I didn’t get serious about writing though until my 7th grade English teacher had the entire class write a poem. Since poetry is actually something I really enjoy doing, I dove right in and didn’t think twice about turning it in. She loved it. In fact, she stayed on my case until I finally gave in, showing her some of my stories and other poetry. She ended up talking me into writing for the school newspaper~ just to write short stories or poetry to fill in space. It probably sounded silly to most of the kids, but, hey, I was hooked.
Life tends to get in the way of dreams though and mine did. I met my husband who has given me 3 beautiful girls and they kept me busy for the past 10 years. My kids loved the little stories I wrote them (this is how they learned to read as well as they do, lol) and would ask me why I didn’t write my very own book. Even my husband would ask why I didn’t start. I played with the idea, even wrote a few beginnings until, finally, I decided to finish one. That was the hardest part… or so I thought! It’s not, of course. I researched the traditional ways of publishing through houses and I was disappointed to see what royalties an author got… if they were lucky enough to get accepted. That’s when I decided to self-publish. Granted, it’s much harder to do but I worked at it, finding someone (Tristan Duplichain who is the BEST in the world) for my cover art, for editing (Mrs. Galloway~ you rock the house) and lots of nightmares of hitting the final button. The PUBLISH NOW? button. THAT, my friends, is the hardest thing you will ever do. EVER. SERIOUSLY…. The terror of hitting that button, of people having the actual ability to say whether or not my book was good, bad, or should be burnt and never seen by human eyes again? OMG I thought I would have nightmares forever.
So now it’s been out a few weeks. A FIRE WITHIN has sold better than I first thought it would (not that I don't think it's good... but let's face it- a self-publishing author with no experience? lol) and I even have great (5 star) reviews. I’m still in shock over that part. I keep waiting for the other shoe to fall but when it does, I will know two things. First, my family loves me, appreciates me & stands by my side in support… second, no matter how much people may love or hate my book? I finished it. I published it. I sweated over it. I am proud of my first book and already am writing the sequel to it. So my advice to you? Don’t throw away your dreams. Plan it, research it, do it & never give up on it. Because no matter what anyone else says, you are the only one who can make it happen.
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