Hello Out There

 I'm out of practice here. I also have nothing meaningful to wax poetic about.

You'd be surprised how often I lay awake and compose blog posts for that one day when I blog again. But no, I have nothing.

Right now my recently graduated daughter is playing Sound of Silence on the piano while my husband scrolls through his phone. I have some artichokes on the stove and expect my younger daughter home any moment from a date. My dog is staying behind the line of demarcation between the family room and dining room. I have increased my viewing size for all my writing to 150%.

If I don't finish and publish this post soon, it won't happen because my husband keeps talking to me (not a complaint, just an observation).

The main info I have to share is that I'm writing forward for the first time in a long time. I'm not piddling around with finished books or coming up with new idea... I'm writing and I WILL finish this WIP this month.

So there. Hello.

PS I was writing earlier while my eldest daughter played piano (it was ABBA). Later I shared that I had been writing a steamy scene. She said, "Oh, that makes sense." "Why?" I asked. "Oh, because you said 'straddled him' out of nowhere." Ah. Okay. At least she's old enough now for that not to be too weird.

I'm Technologically Inept

Greetings. Yes, I'm still alive. And, yes, the last time I posted was in September. Why? I use a Chromebook for school and it won't let me sign out of my school account.

When my school year ended and I dug my ancient but beloved laptop out and tried to log in. For whatever reason it would not let me past the 18-or-older screen... Sigh. It turns out I had to clear my cache.

I'm not good at this stuff. Even as I write this, AVG is popping up left and right to tell me to clear things and pay for things and whatever. Clearly this laptop needs some attention. I prefer a laptop to the Chromebook any day. I dislike writing in Google Docs. I like to have my work saved both in my dropbox and on my computer and the Chromebook is not set up for that.

There is something soothing about the weight of this keyboard and the size of my screen. I'm glad to be back in my element, but it seems I have some work to do. So bear with me.

In the meantime I will start publishing some of the blogs I wrote in Google Docs over the course of the school year and during the quarantine (I live in Southern California and we were in a "Safe at Home" policy starting in March 2020). I taught my World History and Yearbook high school classes through distance learning. I learned that even though I am self-professed loaner, I do crave some human interaction. And, despite my vampire-like approach to sunshine, I need it from time to time. Vitamin D only does so much.

So hello again my friends. I look forward to posting more soon.

**fun fact - when I went to post this I had no internet. Everyone in my house had internet, but I couldn't connect. Bleh.

My Writing Journey

This blog started out about my journey to becoming published. With some slight deviations, my posts have been about my writing, the process, and the industry as I came to know it. During the years my writing has changed (I like to think I've grown) but my goal remained the same. I knew that I would eventually publish a book; all I had to do was remain diligent and work smart.

Now I have published a book. My second book is due to be released in March. This blog, however, will continue to be about my journey because it's certainly not over.

When I first signed that contract I expected to be elated. FINALLY! I thought I'd be proud and confident, that I'd want to celebrate. Instead it was overwhelming. Yes, I got the contract... but what would come next? It was uncharted territory for me. I'd become comfortable with the pattern of rejection and revision, getting back on the horse, and trying again.

I realized that becoming published wasn't the end, it's just a step on the ladder. One race finished and the next started.

So, what's next for me?

1. Continued growth as a writer. I became a better writer with each book. Now I'm writing AND addressing edits. It's a learning process and my editor has been very patient with me as we work out the kinks. I've had trouble with little things like when the form of address is a proper noun and when it's possessive. I'm figuring it out. Eventually it is my goal that I'll get a manuscript back without any basic mistakes and only comments about content. Content adjustments aren't embarrassing. Basic English errors are. As far as my journey goes, this part is very organic and doesn't scare me. As long as I'm open to learning, I will grow.

2. Finding balance as a professional writer. With my book(s) out there, I have a new job: marketing. I need to be writing new material, editing the old, and figuring out how to make connections with  my readers. Being me, I tend to obsess over little things and I need to step back and see the big picture, and organize my efforts in a healthy way. I'm working on it. This part is not easy for me.

3. Finding balance as a human. I'm a mom, a wife, a teacher, an Irish dance mom, a reader, an artist, a puppy-mommy, a dress designer/seamstress, a daughter... I'm a lot of things besides being a writer. I thank God for my husband. He's shouldering some of the weight of marketing/social media. The other day I forwarded him an email and told him my brain was full and I couldn't think about. He took it over with no questions. This is a process I have to figure out.

So the journey is far from over and this blog will continue to follow that journey. Thanks for letting me share it with you.

I'm All Over the Place

It's true. My brain is a plate of spaghetti and I'm at least a touch ADD (attention deficit disorder) so is it any surprise my blog is so inconsistent?

I started this blog when I first joined in with the online writing communities and started growing my craft. Since then my craft has changed. I have changed. But, I still have a handful of books I want to promote and I continue to write forward in various genres.

It's been quite a journey toward finding my identity as a writer. Each time I think I know, something changes and, being a fan of organic growth, I go with it. As a result, the last ten blog posts have been about redefining myself again and again. And again.

And then I cam full circle back to writing Elizabethan historical romance. When I first started this blog, it was called "Doing it Elizabethan Style" thanks to my husband and then changed to "Hold on to Your Bloomers." It's gone through a few evolutions to the current title, "Spocktastic," which is more indicative of me rather than my writing.

The point of this blog post is to own it. It's who I am. I get distracted by shiny things and squirrels. I have moments of genius followed by moments of sleeping. Such is the nature of me and, therefore, my writing.

That said, I like to think my writing is good and entertaining. Right now I'm, as I said in the last post and it's still true, working on bringing Courtly Pleasures back to life. In the meantime, I have posted my paranormal romantic thriller, Possessing Karma, on Inkitt and it is consistently in the top romance novels with over 700 reads. While there's a big part of me that cringes that I'm just putting it out there for free when I feel like it's totally publishable, another part loves that people are actually reading my work.

And that's all for now.

Time

We are steadily chugging through January and it will be February before we know it. After February, it will be Hallowe'en again (the months in between don't count because they go by too quickly to notice) and then the next time you blink will be in 2016. It's incredible how fast time flies when there are deadlines. Even my kids are starting to notice that time has picked up its pace.

As a kid an hour seemed to take forrrrrrevvvvvveerrrrrrr. For my daughters, before they got the concept of the passage of time in terms of hours and minutes, I would label how long things took in terms of Dora the Explorer episodes.

"Mommy, when will the cake be ready to ice?"

"In half a Dora." It helped, during those times, if they were actually watching Dora. Swiper, no swiping. Good times.

Now we joke about it. The trip we took to Phoenix recently was supposed to take eight Doras but ended up taking almost fourteen. They watched Charlie's Angels (the first movie), Annie, and Tinkerbell's pirate movie (which is my least favorite), while my husband and I listened to audio books and learned more about each other (David Sedaris made me laugh and made my husband want to cut himself.)  Even though the drive took forever, we were back home and back at work before we knew it. Now the week is almost over. Sure, it's Wednesday, but it may as well be Friday. Or next Monday. It will be before I know it and there will be tons of things that didn't get done.

Given the crazy current of life, taking time to write (or do something you really love vs. something that just needs doing) is important. It forces me to sit, focus on one thing, and actually accomplish something. I did not write much in the period between August and December (school craziness), but took control of my personal time/space continuum and wrote over the winter break. I am continuing to wedge in time to write and that helps qualify the time spent as worthwhile instead of a blur of activity, laundry that's not folded, and a dance class that we're late to.

I just took half a Dora over my lunch break to write this blog post and there's no reason I couldn't have been doing that regularly over the past months.  It feels good and I'm glad to be back online. Now I'm going to take another half a Dora and read some other blogger's posts.

How do you keep time from sweeping you away?

Feminine Gross Stuff

It's there in the title. If you're squeamish, stop reading now.

My cake walk of a year teaching art part-time became more labor intensive when the 7th and 8th grade English Language Arts teacher quit right before school started. Being nice, I agreed to cover the post temporarily. Obviously, ELA is something I'm passionate about -- I just didn't want to invest the time necessary to be the full time teacher. English= a lot of grading. Art= almost no grading. I chose to work part time to focus on my writing and my kids.

Week one and two pass with me still chipper about the students, the learning, etc... I'm looking forward to still being able to be there for them even when I'm teaching art, I love their enthusiasm, blah blah blah.

Week three and four pass and the light at the end of the tunnel flickers out. Week five and it's Back to School night and if they get a new teacher at this point the kids are going to have a big transitional time. On top of that individually, my students are awesome: collectively they are not the easiest group of kids I've ever taught.

That brings us to today which began with the air conditioning not working (again) and the understanding that I was going to be in my classroom from 7:30am to 8pm (Back to School night, remember?). I constantly rebooted my attitude, but then something else would hit the fan (and yes, I did have a fan courtesy of no a/c - an industrial one that sounded like a train was going down the hall and even made the floor vibrate, kindly lent by the construction guys at the school ). Without going into much detail, during the last period of the day I ended up crying like an idiot instead introducing them to the joys of NaNoWriMo's Young Writer's Program.

Maybe it's harsh to say I was an idiot, but I definitely was not an adult, professional qualified to teach children. My students apologized for being less than angelic, but I realized my true reason for tears was my own sense of failure. I've been teaching for fourteen years and I can't keep it together when the room is eighty-three degrees and the kids are making monkey noises. I can't blame them or the situation, I can only blame myself. I needed to suck it up, grow up, and be professional.

My solution? Thirty minutes of sustained silent reading, and man did I mean SILENT.

So the day ends and I'm frazzled but listening to happy music in major keys as I choose a better attitude and ready myself to meet my student's parents.

And then I use the restroom.

Well, no wonder I felt crappy -- I was bleeding to death! All over the place. Serious murder scene in the staff bathroom. If CSI had come across the evidence, they would have assumed the victim couldn't survive. If I'd had a longer shirt on I would have stayed. As it was I told the male teachers I work with that I had a 'feminine emergency' and they didn't ask me more and just took up the slack (I have a great team). I made my long commute home praying that the layers of paper towels between my underwear and pants would save my upholstery. I sit at home now in my Tinkerbell pajama shorts, my underwear in the trash and my brand new, Not Your Daughter's Jeans pinstripe slacks in the wash despite my intention to only dry-clean.

The good news is that I can now blame my period. Thank you, uterus, for this out. I am not a failure, I am just hormonal and, very possibly, low on iron.

What does this have to do with writing? Not much except that this post began as an excuse for my blogging silence of late. I can make a connection though, if you like... ummmm... well, writing... maybe you can make the connection for me. I'm going to go eat some chocolate.

Why, you ask, did I feel it necessary to write this? To find a moment of zen, perhaps. I spent the drive home composing it in my head and found myself funny, if TMI. Also, I haven't blogged in a long time and have felt the lack of it. So here it is. Take me as I am, lack of filter and all.

Genius Lost

I have a fair to middling commute daily during which time I listen to talk radio, sing along with my iPod playlists, or drive in silence.

Driving in silence, more and more, is becoming the norm. During this time I brainstorm plot lines, get to know characters, and come up with amazing blog posts. The problem I have is transferring all this genius down later. The result? My blog posts are few and far between.

Blogging used to be a precursor to writing. I would check the blogs on my feed, compose a post or two, then get down to the dirty work. Time seems scarcer of late, so if I want to write forward in my manuscript, I can't dillydally. My blog has suffered.

But, oh, those unwritten posts would have rocked your world. :)

In tribute to those never-written posts, I leave you with this. Enjoy.

New Name, Same Blog

From the start my blog has been musings about the writing process. I share personal experiences, lessons I've learned from, and information from the romance industry. Occasionally I deviate with a blog fest or a rant, but I've been true to form.

I came up with Hold on to Your Bloomers in effort to not take myself too seriously and still have a hint of historical romance involved. I even had Doing it Elizabethan Style for a bit, but it grossed me out. Now that I've expanded my writing to include paranormal stories in modern day settings, I think I need a new blog title, if not a new blog identity.

Should it be creepy and dark? I don't think so because I still write with a sense of humor. My Elizabethans have been described as a romp -- I like to think my paranormals, while spooky, have an element of fun as well. I've been brainstorming witty titles, but nothing clicked. 

I spoke to my husband about it and he said to keep it simple, but also make it something that will catch with search engines. He suggested Spock Writes Romance. Is it misleading? Do people expect a Star Trek homage? Maybe. But my last name is Spock, and it's the name people remember about me. It's also generic enough to allow for growth. Yes, I write romance -- so far just historical and paranormal, but who knows what lies down the road. Fantasy/Sci-Fi wouldn't be that big a leap for me. I have a few ideas from a young adult series. 

For the record  yes, I really enjoy Star Trek (never got into Voyager though - 7 of 9 and the doctor were the only good things about that show). 

So, Spock Writes Romance it is. For those of you that have followed me for awhile now, please know that it's still the same blog. When it comes down to it, whatever the name, I blog about writing and the writing experience. Eventually it will include the publication experience.

Just for fun, click below to see the most amazing commercial ever. Every time I think about it, I smile. 

I Write What I Know

I am a white, thirty-six year old college graduate. I grew up exposed to western culture. I was raised with middle class values and a firm appreciation of capitalism and the possibility of improving my lot in life. I am a heterosexual woman. My father wanted me to go to a good college specifically so I would meet my future husband amongst the throng of young men set on succeeding in life (I was always a little offended by this). This is my basic background. Since people write what they know, I write about white women (exception of Karma) and their heterosexual relationships. Because I am a history major (in my adequate college, already married) and active in Renaissance faires, I feel comfortable writing about the Elizabethan era. I know what it's like to wear a corset, farthingale, bumroll, and forty pound dress. This is my element.

In a recent blog post on Teach Me Tonight, one of the quoted articles addressed the "ethnocentricism, heteronormativity, and cultural imperialism," of mainstream romance genre fiction. I really enjoyed the author's voice in this and did not disagree, given I've never been a proponent of romance novels as a form of feminism. It did, however, make me think about why I made the character and plot choices I do. It's because of who I am and what I find engrossing. Making the assumption that this is true for all authors, and given my 'brand' of character/plot is not outside the mainstream norm (much),  this issue is more about what publisher's choose to put forth versus what is being written or the writers themselves. Since publishers only publish what they think will sell and heterosexual, western cultural values based novels are being put out there, one could assume that people who want these stories are the people buying the books. So then is it the supply that determines romance norms? Or the demand? My local bookstore is in Temecula, California -- yuppie central. There is an itty-bitty shelf for GLBT literature. There is no erotica section. Romance spans three aisles. I have noticed that most titles in my local store involve white protagonists -- again, I assume this is a result of marketing analysis in regard to what sells given Temecula's demographic.

My point here? Publishers are providing what readers want to buy. All readers? No. Most readers? Yes. Are romance authors shoving their values of what is attractive, honorable, sexy, moral, etc... down reader's throats? No, the readers are choosing to swallow it (take that how you will). If indoctrination is happening, than the readers are drinking the Kool-aid ™ . I have drunk this particular Kool-aid™ hundreds of times and will continue to do so -- but then again, I am the target market.

I write this today because my stories include a message about self worth, about acceptance. I like to think readers would respond to the characters and story and my stories would have a positive impact. I hate to think of my writing as making someone feel worse, make them feel like an outsider looking in, like they were being judged. Then again, chances are excellent that if you are not in the target market for my books (which, for the record, are not published... yet) you won't buy my book, so it will be a non-issue.

Self Deprecation at its Finest

I just started, really started, my contemporary paranormal romance with suspense sauce. They get down and dirty within the first fifteen pages. Too quickly, you may ask? No, because they’re possessed by ghosts. It’s all good. Don’t worry, they’ll actually have honest and meaningful sex around the appropriate time – say page 125ish. And yes, it will be emotionally significant to their character arcs.

Karma, aka Kay, is an ethnic mutt newly moved to New Orleans to teach religious studies at Tulane. She is newly out of the life of professional student and is playing house. Unfortunately her house is haunted. You’d think as a scholar of religious studies that she’d be open to that stuff, but no – she thinks of mystical explanations as a crutch for humanity. Lucky for the readers, the ghosts are horny. Lucky for Kay (I have cast Halle Berry, but with blue eyes), her neighbor and chainsaw artist, is hot (Joe Manganiello). Yes, I have been watching True Blood and Saw Dogs.

In other news, Courtly Abandon edits w/beta readers are going well. No one has been turned off by my hero’s virginity, although one commented that the scene were he was trying not to, umm, spend, in his pants, hinted at sexual dysfunction. Changing that. Otherwise, my incredibly well bathed Elizabethans finding love amidst adversity has been well received.

Sometimes I enjoy laughing at myself. Sometimes I don’t. Right now I’m in the process of trying to finesse my queries. In doing so, I’m trying to step back and look at the big picture. What are my stories really about? This morning, this process has resulted in my laughing at myself. A lot. I’m frustrated with some of the cliché necessities of genre fiction, even though I’m confident that I addressed them professionally and made them an organic part of my stories. I like to think that I own the fact that I write romance. I am unashamed, proud even – but then I find myself highlighting all the steamy scenes to make sure there are enough and that they’re well balanced and I get a little sad. But then I read a romance and it lightens my day. I have to remember that, whenever I think of myself as tawdry, that I’m writing what I love, what many readers will love. Romance offers that silver lining and any negative thoughts I have about it stem from external sources. Take that, world!

Here I am writing my fourth book about stunningly beautiful people with baggage. Lucky for them I’m here to help them get past their issues and realize that love is worth it and that they are worthy of happiness. So, watch out Karma and Philippe, I’m about to rock your world way more than the ghosts of the wealthy plantation owner and his Creole mistress ever could. Just ask Jane and Percy, or Mary and Charles, or Frances and Henry.

Note to Self: I am an Alto

This blog post is more of a ramble. Just remember, you chose to read it.

I should be getting my clearance to return to work later this afternoon. If all goes well, I’ll be back with my class of adolescents on Monday. It’s crazy, but I’m looking forward to it. I also should be getting a handicap placard (which I will not abuse).

Things have been funky for me since the incredibly stupid injury. I have slept a lot more than is probably healthy. I have developed a tendre for Vampire Diaries. I have finished Courtly Abandon and begun round one of edits prior to beta readers. I have lost all muscle tone in my left leg, but my right calf still has some definition. I find it easier to cry lately (Damon killed Rose, I was a blubbering mess). I am enamored with making cupcakes. I’ve gotten better about answering my phone and responding to texts in a timely manner. I did not get to do faire this year, but I have some designs for next year’s dress.

Today, I went out for coffee (green tea latte w/almond milk, actually) with a friend. I drove myself. I even stopped to get gas after. Look at me being all independent and not housebound! In the car I listened to the original Broadway cast soundtrack of Phantom of the Opera. A big part of me still loves it like I did in high school. A little part of me recognizes how dated it is. Then there is that tingly sensation I get with the soaring of the strings inMusic of the Night, and I stop being nit-picky. Let your soul take you were you long to beeeeeeeee! It gives me chills (even though I'm critical of ending such a powerful note on such an insipid word).

As soon as I came home I dusted off the piano and found my sheet music. My sight reading is no longer what it was, but the muscle memory was there from all those years ago. I have confirmed that I’m still not a soprano (although now I have the guts to just go for it, I don’t care if the neighbors hear) and that I really love playing. Maybe I’ll tune my harp next and give it a go. Who knows?

But for now, I’m blogging to warm up, then jumping back into Courtly Abandon edits. Playing was a great creative stimulus and I’m amped. I just have to remember that Percy, my mc, has been cast as Hugh Dancy. I will NOT rewrite him to look like Ian Somerhalder. Hazel eyes, not icy blue. Must remember.

Thanks for reading. I hope you have a wonderful day.

Just for fun, here’s my current desktop wallpaper, for inspiration’s sake.

I Brushed My Teeth, What More Do You Want?

From Hyperbole and a Half

Almost five weeks since the break. Three weeks since surgery. I am officially on disability now through mid-May and I hate it. I am a troll living in a cave. I’m going to get bed sores on my butt. My left calf is now Jello™ and even the Achilles tendon on my right foot is tight from disuse.

I got an orthotic boot the other day, but it wants my foot to be a right angle – so I’m still in the splint until the doctor can x-ray again on Tuesday. When I called the doctor’s office to ask about the angle of the boot, I made the mistake of saying a “90 degree angle.” The nurse asked me what I meant by that. I explained it was a flexed foot. She said, “Oh! You mean a right angle.” This does not inspire confidence.

Today, as I wrote about how I was doing to a friend (honestly – not just ‘fine), I realized I had hit several symptoms of depression. Me? Depressed? Nah – I’m just irritated at everyone. I mean, I would feel better if everyone just left me alone, let me sleep all the time, and stopped making me eat and groom myself.  Huh – maybe that is depression. Maybe I should change the tank top I’ve been wearing for the past few days (maternity, used to say ‘baby’ in now-missing rhinestones) and brush my teeth.

Having done that (and a little more) I still want to go to sleep. I’m convinced I’ll feel better once I’m mobile. It’s soul sucking just waiting for time to pass. And now that I’m on disability, I can’t even stress myself out with lesson plans.

All the help I’m receiving is making me crazy. Even worse – I actually do need that help. It’s painful to converse and be pleasant as someone reorganizes my pantry or my kid’s dresser. It’s the same as receiving a critique – it may be hurtful, but it was well intended and remember, every critique is a gift. Well, my family is awesome and very giving – and I want to burrow under my blankets and not speak to any one.

Speaking of critiques, I recently got feedback from YellowRose RWA’s Winter Rose for unpublished writer’s competition. Totally worth the $25.  I sent in the first 25 of Courtly Scandals and Courtly Abandon. Courtly Scandals is clean, has been queried, had interest, etc… Courtly Abandon is not even finished, really. The judges confirmed both. Scandals did very well in all, averaging 85/100. Abandon averaged 65/100 and I learned what I have learned with all my books so far – I started the story in the wrong place.

In RWA Golden Heart you get the judges final score. In Winter Rose, the judging sheet had many categories with room for feedback. They even inserted comments into the Word doc and emailed me the attachments.  It was a great experience. Of course, I have fixated on the 51/100 I received from one judge on Courtly Scandals more than the 99/100 I received from another, but when I step back I’m able to use both to make myself a better writer. (Amongst other things, the 51/100 really did not feel I fleshed out my world enough – something I either do too much or too little, so err toward the latter. I need to find a balance where descriptions do not detract from story.)

I am forcing myself to stop wallowing today. Yes, I am hiding in my room, but I have my computer and WILL NOT play any games on Facebook. I will write – maybe not anything productive, but I won’t cocoon myself with my quilt and have bad dreams about my foot. I will also wear deodorant. 

I'm Not Ignoring You

3 hours after fall

I broke my foot on Sunday, 3/11. Urgent care said it was a bone chip, but the orthopedic doctor said the chip is attached to a tendon, so requires surgery. Oh, and I broke it in 3 other places as well. While this validated my pain and made me feel less wussy, it has really thrown a wrench in the gears of my life.

I have to take extended leave from school. I still don’t know if this means disability or a sub – and if my sick days are limited to M/W/F (the days I teach) or the whole week. And if I’m doing lesson plans. I don’t know anything. It stresses me out a lot, but then I take a Vicodin™.

Day 2

I also have not been upright long enough to write and/or blog. I am woefully behind on checking people’s crusader challenges and missed another Romantic Friday Writer’s opportunity. It stresses me out, but then the Vicodin™ kicks in and I’m comatose for the 4 hours the drug works.

It’s the only way I can sleep now because I’m wearing a big f-ing (I've been cussing a lot) boot that weighs 20lbs and doesn’t fit right. They were going to cast it, but I had to get it CAT scanned so they opted for the boot.  I would complain more here, but my Vicodin™ is starting to work and I need to lay down.

Stupid $%&#&#@ boot

So this blog is to say I’m not ignoring anyone. I will catch up after my surgery (Wednesday-ish).

Peeves About Blogging and Life in General

Here are some of my peeves, in no particular order.


1. No, I am not a robot. I do, however, have a hard time confirming that when I try to leave a post on your blog (Especially if I'm doing it from my phone). I took off the anti-spam word verification thingy last April during the A-Z blogfest and, since then, have only had 1 spam (which blogspot caught all by itself). Not only does it make it more labor intensive to leave a comment, I know that there have been times when I left the comment, select "post comment" then left the page. I don't know if a robot check came up and/or if my comment posted at all.

2. People who sign up for a blogfest and don't participate. Seriously, don't even sign up unless you are ready to schedule your post. Yes, life gets busy -- but it's busy for the other bloggers who are stopping by to visit. I assume you signed up because you'd like to be a part of the online writing community. If so, don't alienate or irritate people by wasting their time.

Poltergeist Peeves in Lego Harry Potter

3. People who make a mistake, get caught, and blame the person holding them accountable. Really, if you messed up, own it. No, they did not get you in trouble - you got yourself in trouble. Be a grown up. If you happen to be a parent, help your child grow up and accept that they make mistakes that have consequences. Or, if you happen to be a child, start down the path toward being a grown up by being responsible for your own actions. As much as you want to point the finger, you have no one to blame but yourself.

4. If someone tells you to stop doing something and you care about what that person thinks about you, stop doing it! If you value their esteem and don't wish to cause hurt, take their clear communication of "STOP IT!" as the queue to stop. Anything other than that is purposeful bullying.

5. If you get a critique on your writing, don't argue with it. A critique is a gift of the other person's time. They are trying to help you, not be malicious or hurtful. If they see a problem, maybe there is a problem. And if you have to explain what you really meant, then obviously the reader didn't get it and, yes, the critique was valid. I have held back from leaving negative critiques to people I don't know (or rather, who don't know me and won't have reason to think my opinion is valid). I'm not doing them any favors by being nice. What I would do was compliment the positive aspects and just not mention the negatives. Anyone who ever got a critique from me that said they had very lyrical writing, that was my nice way of saying their prose was unreadably purple and overly verbose. I am being more forthright from now on.

This applies to self-published writers that argue with negative reviews. Seriously, just be happy that real readers (not friends and family) took the time to review your book. That means people are reading it, right?

6. If the shopping cart return is right next to your car, why didn't you put it away? You, sir or madam, are an ass.

7. Non-smokers who choose to sit outside, right next to people already smoking, and cough/complain loudly.

8. Smokers who choose to sit right next to families even though there are plenty of open seats further away, and smoke. Then they give the kids dirty looks when the kids (loudly) want to know what smells bad.

9. People who are not crystal clear with their wants/needs/etc... out of reluctance to appear confrontational. This is a problem of mine - in effort not to be offensive, I back down immediately when an aggressive personality wants to change my viewpoint. I always thought there was no point in stating my opinion at that time because they'll just take it as a challenge to change my mind. Unfortunately, my silence is often viewed as tacit agreement. IT IS NOT. Unless I state differently, I stand by what I said. I have to make myself crystal clear. If you don't like something, speak up. If you don't, you'll end up going to a Mexican restaurant when you really wanted Chinese food and then sulking. Or worse. And, yes, it can get much worse.

10. People who take a contrary opinion in an open exchange of ideas as a direct attack. For the record I am not opposed to gay marriage. I am not opposed to stem cell research given certain regulations. I think it's the parent's job to teach their children about sexuality, not the State's. I am pro-small business and anti-big government. I think McCain could have been a great president, but Sarah Palin scares me. I do not believe in government hand outs, bail outs, or that people should be entitled to unemployement because they are too unpleasant to work for anyone (this is about a specific person, not people on unemployment in general). I am not in favor of socialized health care, but do think that medical insurance needs to be re-engineered. I think voting on party lines based on being part of a party shows either ignorance of lack of conviction. I think voting for something you know nothing about is reckless. I think No Child Left Behind is the Federal Government's way of butting into Constitutionally laid out State's rights by dangling a $ carrot (and is crap). I think every child is capable of being great in different ways and that standardized testing does not account for everything.
So, now I have stated my opinions. I respect your right to disagree and will not take it as a direct attack. I am confident enough in myself. If, however, you feel the need to jump down my throat or cry, you are now meeting peeve #10. If you, however, realize I'm entitled to my opinion and not trying to change your mind or shove my beliefs down anyone's throat, we're good. For the record: I don't share my opinions on these subjects with my students. It's important to me that my students develop their own opinions, not parrot mine.

Thank you for letting me vent. To think, this all started because I was catching up on commenting on the last blogfest and got frustrated with the security checks. Then it snowballed. From the list, you could probably surmise that I've had a frustrating week (or so).

Feel free to add to the list.

BTW, it is a peeve that Peeves was not included in the Harry Potter movies. The scene where Fred and George let loose the swamp in the school and Peeves gets to go hog wild is one of my favorites from the books.

Wasting Time and Giving Myself an Asthma Attack

I've been pretty disciplined on the writing front lately, but today I spent a lot of time doing stupid stuff. And, since procrastination is such a big part of the writing process, I will share my wheezing laughter with you.

For those of you who have not seen this yet, this is from a site called Damn You, Auto Correct! and it's amazing.  I've had some texting typos. The worst was when I told my friend that my daughter wanted a Doodle Bear thingy for her birthday, but my phone corrected it to a Doodle Bear thong. Lily, thankfully, did not get a thong for her seventh birthday.  Of course some of the words that autocorrect comes up with are pretty crazy. I don't think my phone would automatically go to 'necrophilia.' I think text history is a factor in these things.

Another site I spent too much time on Passive Aggressive Notes. These are amazing. A good place to procrastinate.

Nasty Cute is another favorite. You do have to be in the right sort of mood. The premise is that they are the real thoughts of the adorable animals in the picture.
The text that goes along with the pic below is as follows:

“SHUT THE DOOR, SHUT THE DOOR!

Jeff - you’re not supposed to be in here, you don’t want to see this. We agreed when you moved in: when I hire a lady for the evening, YOU DO NOT ENTER MY ROOM. Now turn around and close the door and forget you ever saw this.”

I will always recommend any of the Hyperbole and a Half blogs, but they do take a time commitment to go through. Because of this my husband has never read any of them. Allie Brosch is a GENIUS! I look forward to seeing her finished book. I have even used (modified) her Alot post in class.

By and by, this is the most labor intensive blog post I think I have ever done. Very little thought, but a lot of images -- and right now my computer/blogger is being persnickety about downloading the jpgs.




Cake Wrecks is also worth a time investment. Some amazing stuff. I enjoy this way better than the awesome stuff on Cake Boss.

And now my desktop is cluttered with saved jpgs of varying names. Instead of cleaning up, I'll leave them there for my Mom to find when she uses my computer on Wednesday. File names include, but are not limited to:

• jesus coke.jpg 
• strangle cat.jpg
• jerk-dad.jpg
• 3thbdayboyboobs
• monkeypoonastycute.jpg
• analblaster.jpg.  

I think she'll enjoy seeing those up there. I wonder if she'll click on them?

And, no, I haven't been drinking. I probably am a little oxygen deprived from all the laughter though. I will go get my inhaler after I sign off.

For your viewing enjoyment, here's analblaster.jpg from Damn You, Auto Correct! Happy procrastinating!

Go Go Go!

The school year is off to a good start. I've been constantly on the go and haven't had time to breathe, let alone time to think. Or blog.

I've started a virtual writing club for my students. I'm using blogspot. It's only visible to authors or by invitation, so it's secure and the kids seem excited. I'm really pleased about it. That also means I need to actually take my YA project more seriously because I sure can't post stuff from my romances. :)

Speaking of Romance, Golden Heart will be here before you know it. That means it's time, really time, to get cracking on finishing Courtly Abandon. Honestly, I do work better with something hanging over my head. I set my own deadlines, but I always know that they're flexible. Getting ready for Golden Heart is not something I can just choose to change the date on.

So, that's my update. Life is GOGOGO,  but it's a good thing. I'm pleased with the direction of my writing and feel optimistic about things to come.

How's everything going for you right now?

That Time of Year

The summer has flown by and now it's time for school to start again. "Wait," you say. "It's still summer!"

I know - that's the kicker. Why is school starting so early? What happened to 3 months of summer break? I mean, even Phineas and Ferb say there's 104 days of summer vacation. At my count, I had 45. Not cool.

Anyhoo, life goes on. Lesson plans replace plotting. Stress dreams replace the inspirational. The real bummer is that I did not finish Courtly Abandon in the time I allotted. The good news is that I only have about 5 chapters to go and I could churn those out in a moment of inspired writing. My new deadline, and I'm being generous about time, is the end of September.

And, because I have nothing good to contribute today, I will share this pic and commentary from a blog my sister just turned me onto, NastyCute.

“I have something here for you.”
“YEAH! PUT IT IN ME!!”
“Oh yeah? You want this?”
“YEAH! PUT IT IN MY MOUTH!”
Bow chicka tweet tweet.

An Unfortunate MeMe: Underclothes

No thank you to Taryn Tyler for tagging me. Okay, fine. Thank you. This was fun in a silly way. :)

In this MeMe, I have been given a number of questions pertaining to underclothes.  Here goes:

Betsy Johnson Chantilly Floral

1. What do you call your panties / underwear / undergarments? Do you have any commonly used nicknames for them? Underwear, underpants, and less commonly, panties.

2. Have you ever had that supposedly common dream of being in a crowded place in only your underwear? No, but I have had dreams where I was naked.

3. What is the worst thing you can think of to make panties out of? Polyester (within the realm of realistic). in the realm of fantasy, I would choose a) nettles b)jellyfish c)fiberglass.

4. If you were a pair of panties, what color would you be, and WHY? I would be, depending on mood, either a very delicate soft pink and lacy (but comfortable) or black and hot pink and lacy (and not designed for long term wear).

5. Have you ever thrown your panties/underwear at a rock star or other celebrity? If so, which one(s)? If not, which one(s) WOULD you throw your panties/underwear at, given the opportunity? No, but I recently suggested my sister do so. She's going to see Tom Jones in concert -- I think throwing panties is a requirement.

6. You’re out of clean panties. What do you do? I go commando and put some laundry in the wash.
7. Are you old enough to remember Underoos? If so, did you have any? Which ones? Yes. I had Princess Leia underoos.

8. If you could have any message printed on your panties, what would it be? Look Away!

9. How many bloggers does it take to put panties on a goat?  None. There is no goat.

And, out of human kindness, I will not tag anyone. But feel free to tag yourself if you are so inclined. :)

Blogdentity

I think one of my biggest hurdles in blogging lately has been my lack of blogdentity.  When I started blogging I wrote musings about the writing process.  Sometimes my subjects were random (most of the time) but I always worked them back to writing.  Occasionally I shared samples from my w.i.p. for a blogfest, but I stayed consistent with myself. I liked to read blogs from other writers going through the same struggles I was, and I thought my blog would appeal to like minded people.

I did not notice at first, but bit by bit, my blog started getting taken over by blogfests. THis is when I started loosing my blogdentity. April's A-Z blogfest was the icing on the cake. I have been struggling  since then to get my head above water in the blogosphere.

In attempt to return to my roots I stepped away from all blogfests. This was a mistake. Blogfests held me accountable to a timeline and helped me pace myself. Solution, jump back into blogfests but in moderation. I will not participate in more than 3 blogfests in a month. Give or take 2. Or 3. We'll see. The point is, I think I can still be me and contribute to the greater blogging community.  The most important thing is that I stay true to myself. I learned this in regard to my writing projects, now I learn it as applies to my blog.

So, in being true to myself, here is a blog post about nothing in particular but linking vaguely back to the theme of how the writing process. Not really awe inspiring, I know. But I hope it gets me back on track.

What do you do to stay consistent with your blogdentity?

Mojo Tagged Me

Thank you Mojo for your tag.

1. What's the first thing you do in the morning? I hit snooze, sometimes more than once.  Then the usual ablutions followed by waking my kids up with snuggles.  They prefer my way - Daddy wakes them up by clapping.

2. How old do you feel? Most of the time I feel fairly young, as in the ingenue with wide eyes and trust. Then I remember I'm not young and have to be the one making tough decisions. Or I'll be made aware of how uncool I am. Things that I think of as happening a couple years ago actually happened fifteen years ago. Then there are times my body reminds me I am not young. When I try to demonstrate a cartwheel or help my daughter practice her jigs. Yes, I still have a strong point, but I cannot do a full extension any longer.

3. What's your sign and does the description match your personality? I am a Leo, with a rising sign in Virgo. People tell me I read Virgo, but that's because I'm too insecure to let my Leo-ness shine.
Do I believe in it? I believe that there are social, economic, etc... factors that effect your development that can be attributed to the time of year you were born.  As to the stars themselves I remain skeptical but not belittling.

4) How do you like your caffeine? Coffee with my flavored creamer. I do not respond to caffeine like normal people. I find coffee soothing, relaxing, but that may be more the act of sipping a hot beverage than the chemical itself.

5) Favorite cartoon character? This is difficult. I used to have a crush on the blond archer from Dungeons and Dragons. I enjoyed Hiccup from How to Train Your Dragon. I quote Doug the Dog from Up frequently.  As a child I wanted to be Peter Pan, then as I got older I switched to Wendy.


Watch out bloggers-whom-I-follow, you might get tagged.