Fractured Fiction

Weather Update and Pictures

2009-11-12T15:38:00.033-05:00

It's been a while since I updated the blog,and since I'm stuck at home I thought I'd do some blogging. Things have been crazy around here lately, lots going on (and not all of it good), but not all of it is my news so can't really share it. As a result I've been doing a lot of thinking (but not much writing). I've been modifying my evil plans, hope to get them implemented sooner rather than later. I've also been working out the changes I need to make to the ghost story (and really must stop calling it a ghost story since he's no longer a ghost). I want to work on my schedule, make more time to write (and blog). I'm also getting my apartment organized and cleaned, I'm hosting my first Thanksgiving dinner (Should be fun).

And since I'm tired of talking about the weather (I've been talking about it on my Facebook page), I've finally posted some of the pictures from my trip to NY for the Author's After Dark weekend. Some of the pictures weren't as in focus as they looked in the camera, and if I owed you a picture I apologize it was too fuzzy to send. So now, on to the pictures.

1) The author in her element (aka Mechele at home). I drove to her house and then rode with her to NY. She's good people and I had an awesome weekend hanging with her. Am talking her into riding together to RT this spring.

2) Crossing a bridge on I-95, not sure which river.

3) Reduce Eed- in other words- Ow Down.

4) Fall! The most awesome trees I didn't get pictures of, came and went by too fast for me to aim and shoot. but the pictures I did get were pretty good.

5) Audra Price (and her mum)- it was really cool getting the chance to meet her (and hang out with Stella).

6) Jennifer Armintrout- had a blast hanging out with her. She's so much fun. Can't wait to see her again at RT (hint, hint).

7) Stella and Jacqi had a baby shower for Audra and ninjababy- complete with cake and presents. Isn't the bear great?

8) I saw these and thought of Larissa- Star Trek toys- pretty cool, huh?

9) These were taken during the book signing- this is Teresa Noells Roberts and Selena Illyria (who I met at RT in Pittsburgh).

10) Tilly Green- had a great time hanging with her, told her all about my evil plans for world domination. She agreed to participate when the time comes (insert evil laugh here). :)

11) The very nice Cat Johnson-

12) And Eliza Gayle-

13) Samantha Summersby

14) Jennifer Armintrout during some down time.

15) Taken on the bridge over the Delaware River.

16) This is a picture of the bridge itself- an impressive structure.

17) Another picture of Mechele- who very generously did not smack me on the head for taking so many pictures. :)

18) Road signs leading us home

19) More pictures of fall (cause I can't ever get enough of fall).

20) More fall.

21) Mechele again. :)

22) The Potomac (I think). For some reason our bypass around DC took us to the west.

23) the Potomac from a different direction.

24) Not sure what this is, but it's outside of DC.

25) The Barnes & Noble outside DC- it looks huge.

26) Quantico- it can be the oddest things that capture your attention on long drives.

Weekend Update

2009-06-21T12:40:00.002-04:00

My friend Susan at West of Mars does this thing on her blog called only good news, which is pretty smart if you think about it, it makes you think of good things instead of the bad or just bleh. So with that in mind, here it goes. Yesterday was the first day of summer, and I celebrated by going out with two friends after work (who both also had to work) and had a lovely meal at one of my favorite Mexican restaurants. It was nice to sit and chat. I've started dealing with the mountain of books that have taken over my dining room table, and of course found duplicates, as well as books I need to send out to peeps. I've also been working on my ghost story today and am up to 75 hundred words and 32 pages. I'm still enjoying the story, even if I don't know how it ends (I do know, sort of, where it's going). I also saw Race to Witch Mountain Friday (on what was otherwise a supremely lazy day), it was interesting, very different from the original, but in a good way (much better special effects but I would have been surprised if that hadn't been the case). In an effort not to get overwhelmed with things I need to do, I've made myself a mental check list and limited it to five goals for the summer. They are:
1) finish the ghost story
2) buy a bike (and use it)
3) visit Larissa
4) go home and see mom
5) send in my submission (the finished book)
There are others that I will probably also work on as the time permits, I've got plans for a website, maybe a teen oriented blog for the dayjob, a database for all of the people I've met at RT and other conferences, and other evil plans (which involve the quest for world domination or a three week vacation- whichever comes first).
Have a Happy Father's Day, and here's hoping we all have a healthy, happy, and hurricane free summer.

Weekend Update

2009-06-08T21:35:00.002-04:00

I wrote this yesterday, most of it, and decided to post it as is. It gives a better idea of what yesterday was like. And I'm not really up to rewriting the whole thing.
I'm typing this sitting in the Boston/Logan Airport, with a 4 hour layover, and no free wifi. Which is just wrong. And evidently none of the coolers are cold, so no cold soda (or more importantly- no sandwich for dinner). There are three gates that seem to be completely separate from all of the others, and there is no restaurant, no fast food, no coffee shop; just a sandwich stand (with evidently room temperature sandwiches) and a newsstand with not cold drinks. Joy.
I must say though, that the rest of the weekend totally rocked, so I'm not ready to pitch a blue fit (yet) more in the nature of a cranky in need of a nap or maybe a comfy chair with a cop of tea and some quiet. Which I won't get, unless I want to go through the hassle of going out and coming back in through security. Still not decided so I'll tell you about this weekend while I think about it. I left Friday morning and flew to Akron by way of Atlanta, and landed in Akron with no problems (despite the rain that made 64 slow down in several areas), and met Susan (from West of Mars) when she picked me up. The drive to Cinnci took us longer than we thought, but it wasn't too bad. Driving through Ohio is (I must confess) boring. No mountains, no water, not much variation in the scenery (which was nice- just the same for the whole trip).
We stopped for dinner along the way, and got their about 8, and registered for our room, and went back down to register. We ran into some old friends: Lorelei James, Shiloh Walker, and Bianca D'Arc, and also met some new ones: Valerie Tibbs and Jambrea Jo Jones. I even managed to surprise Kensana Darnell, who didn't know I was going to be there (for those of you who don't know- I met her through the Write-Minded Readers Group, and then met her in person when we found out that she lives not far from my mom).
The room was nice and comfy, the two doubles beds were loaded with pillows. Friday was an early night, which was good as we got up early and made it down for breakfast.
(I went out through security but didn't find anything that looked comfortable and schlepped my way back through security and am back in the gate waiting area- it is now 7:11 pm- and I have just under 2 hours to go).
We ate breakfast with Emma Holly and bought more raffle tickets and distributed them around to the various gift bags (there was one bag with a selection of ya books that I was seriously coveting. There was also a great big basket from the Ohio Romance Writer which included a one day pass to their September contest, and I threw one in there, as well as a bag of Suzanne Brockmann's books, a couple of bags from Shiloh, and Bianca, and Lorelei (and also Lori Armstrong), and a few that I can't remember.
After breakfast we went to the talk that Angie gave on e-publishing. I always learn something when I listen to one of Angie's talks. She talked about the various myths concerning epubs, and talked quite a bit about contracts and pointed out clauses you might want to negotiate before you sign (because once you sign you are bound to the contract): clauses such as ownership of your author name, ownership of your characters and world, worldwide rights and length of contract. And of course, hamster shifters. :)
After the talk we went through the booksale to get the books for the book signing, which took a long time (they only had one cashier). Then we went to lunch and got ready for the booksigning. I was relatively good at the bookstore, I bought:
Long Hard Ride by Lorelei James, Firedrake by Bianca D'Arc, “Tween Heaven and Hell by Sam Cheever, Winter's Daughter by J.C. Wilder, Fragile by Shiloh Walker, Chains by Shiloh (for Charli), Hallowed Ground by Lori Armstrong, and Fairyville by Emma Holly. The book in my goody bag at registration was Maverick by Lora Leigh (which she signed for me). It was great to get to sit around and just talk with everybody and make new friends. And of course get new books.
After the booksigning, Susan and I went upstairs to crash before dinner. And I crashed hard. And woke up still feeling groggy. Dinner was good, and after they did the raffle drawing. I won the big read basket from the Ohio Romance Writers. Susan and Angie both generously offered to take it for me since they were convinced it wouldn't fit with my luggage (I'd come prepared).
After dinner, we somehow ended up in the bar with J.C. Wilder and Lorelei and several other awesome people, watching the hockey game and listening to J.C.'s crazy stories.
This morning we were up and out by 8?9?/ We stopped at the first Cracker Barrel we saw and had breakfast, and made it to the airport with more than an hour to spare. We had to sit on the tarmac for a while, but it wasn't that long and then we were in the air and made it here.
This weekend (layover in Boston not withstanding) was very relaxing. I've got plans. Big plans, little plans, long and short range plans. But not right now. It's too noisy to concentrate, so I think I will save this, shut George down,and go find a bottle of water. TTFN.
I'm home now, I some how managed to get up this morning and get to work. The morning was spent on books and book keeping, the afternoon on putting together three flag stands and one display stand. I seem to be the designated assembler of furniture and displays.
And now I'm thinking about going to RWA (at least for the literacy signing).

Thursday Thirteen #???

2009-05-28T19:59:00.001-04:00

13 Reasons I’ve Been OD’ed on Books
Yes, evidently it is possible to od on books, and for the past two weeks, I have not wanted to have anything to do with books. I’m still reading, and have read a couple of really good books, but when reading you are only dealing with one book at a time, which I can handle. But any collection of books larger than what you can carry in one hand and I want nothing to do with it. Why you ask? Let me tell you. 
1) The dayjob- first there was the weeding (the entire library- parts of it more than once), then there was the rearranging (parts of it were moved more than once), and lastly there was the tagging (which involved putting a sticker in every book, cd, and dvd in the collection), which is in preparation for putting in a self checkout system. Which means I have handled, inspected, and stickered a larger percentage of the collection, frequently more than once.
2) Then there are my own books- which are in a constant state of running out of room. So I’m frequently shifting, shuffling, and weeding books from my library, making room for the new books I knew were coming. Such as…
3) Mount RT- the stacks of books that came back from RT with me and are currently camped out on my dining room table while I find homes for them all (make no mistake, I’m very happy to have them all- especially the freebies and the signed ones- I’m just tired of dealing with large collections at the moment, and they definitely qualify as large collections).
4) Then there are the books that were weeded from the dayjob collection that somehow or other made it into the personal collection (all of which were paid for with a donation to the friends of the library- I just went a little overboard and am now looking for homes for them as well- you can stop laughing now).
5) Then there are the friends (not the friends of the library- my friends) the ones who all put out books at the same time, which makes me want to buy, you got it, more books. It’s getting to the point where I can’t afford any new friends. Srsly.
6) And the library books- shelving, weeding, shifting- invariably I find books that I want to read (but thankfully don’t feel the need to own), Library books that I check out still need space, specifically a space where I won’t lose them and find them again months later (don’t laugh- I misplaced a book I’d gotten at a book signing and only found it last week).
7) It got to the point where I didn’t even want to browse the shelves at B&N, not that I didn’t want any new books so much as I didn’t want to have to find a place for them (sad, I know).
8) But. I think I’m getting over my book binge. I can look at the book shelves at work and not feel overwhelmed by all that needs to be done.
9) I haven’t done anything with Mount RT yet, but I’ve got an idea of what I can do. It would even take care of the books I brought home from the library (research sources- honest- okay, stop laughing).
10) It involves cleaning out the closet off the dining room, putting a bookcase (or two) in there, and keeping the research materials in there (as well as my papers and records and stuff). That would free up space in the other book cases.
11) Which would give me enough space to clear off the dining room table, and the computer desk. And once I cleared off the computer desk, I could set up the laptop, and hook it to the printer, and print out stuff (and submit said stuff).
12) And once all of this is done, I would get back to writing more, and getting more done.
13) Which would make me feel better, which I think is part of why I’ve been so wah about all of the books in my life.
14) Did I mention I’m going to Lori Foster’s get together in a week? And no doubt will return from Ohio… with more books.

Weekend Update

2009-05-23T09:37:00.004-04:00

Not much to say, honestly. The dayjob has been kicking my butt (we've been tagging the entire collection to get ready for them to install a self check-out system and new security gates- and we're almost done), getting ready for summer and not one but three summer reading programs, as well as scheduling as many programs for the kids who are going to live in the library as we can. So today I am tired and stiff and sore and don't want to do anything with the mountain of books currently taking up my dining room table.

On the writing front, again not much to say but this weekend I plan to set up my work space and set up the printer with the laptop and print out the first three chapters of whistle to send out. Not sure if I want to continue working on the urban fantasy or maybe take a step back and work on something else, maybe what I need to do first is take stock of my options.

At the moment I'm reading Ecstasy by Jacquelyn Frank and enjoying it. Not sure what I'll read next, but I have plenty of options (I even checked out a few books from the library), I brought the new Monk book home from the library (by Anne Perry), and might read that one next (Love the Monk mysteries).

And lastly, for a good laugh, this is me as a Lego:

Update (sort of)

2009-05-08T00:44:00.002-04:00

I know, I've been a bad blogger. I meant to have posts from RT, but the highspeed wireless was as highspeed as molasses flowing uphill in January (in a raging blizzard). And then after the long-ass drive home, I got thrown back into the hustle and bustle of the dayjob, and still don't feel up to snuff. But I won't whine about that here (although I have been whining about it in person), I will say that due to the evening thunder storms this is the first time in three days that I've been able to post. So I thought I'd tell you all about my trip. This is kind of long, but not as long as it could have been, I think I took about a quarter of the pictures I took last year. Also, if I owe you pictures, I will try to get them out to you as soon as I can.

RT was a blast. The drive was long but not so bad, I got to see my sister, which is always fun, and then I got to see people. Some were people I had met last year: Sasha White, Lauren Dane and Megan Hart, Anya Bast, Beth Williamson, Jeanne Stein, and Richelle Mead. Others I met for the first time this year: Cynthia Eden, Stella Price, Angie Fox, Anna Evans, Jenna Black, and Christine D'Abo (although I've been reading her blog for a while now). And of course I got to see Jo Carol, Kate, and the rest of the awesome RT staff again, without needing them to save my bacon as they did last year. Which is always good.

The panels were good, and informative, and just plain fun. The first day I went to to of the bookseller programs and learned a lot, but except for a couple of events for the booksellers, I mostly went to writer panels. The first one I went to was on writing Demons, with Stella Price, Larissa Ione, Jenna Black, Jacquelyn Frank, and Bianca D'Arc.

This was Larissa's first RT, and her first panel. It went well, despite her penchant for one word answers, and several people said they thought it was the best panel they'd seen. The cool thing was I got to hang out with pretty much the entire panel at one time or another during RT. I even sat with Bianca during the Vampire Ball.

The next panel was humor in paranormals, but the pictures didn't come out well, so I'm not going to try and post them here. The panel included Dakota Cassidy, Mario Acevedo, Michele Bardsley, Judi McCoy, and Mark Henry.

I then went to a vampire panel, with Patrice Michelle as moderator, and Caridad Piniero, Angela Knight, L.A. Banks, Jeanne C. Stein, Vivi Anna, and Kerrilyn Sparks.
I'm including this one because you can't see Vivi in the other.

L.A. Banks in the vampire panel.

These pictures were taken while in line to go into the Fairy Ball

Wings!

More Wings!

Shoes!

Ann Aguirre and Cynthia Eden at the book signing

Jeanne C. Stein

Lorelai James

Michele Bardsley

Sasha White

Christine D'Abo

Lauren Dane

Cynthia Eden

Mario Acevedo

Ash aka A.D. Roland aka Adra Steia

Mechele Armstrong

Shayla Black

Jenna Black

Anya Bast

Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Dakota Cassidy

Cash Cole

Cynthia Eden

Annaliese Evans

Angie Fox

Kayleigh Jamison and Myla Jackson

Cat Johnson and Stephanie Julian

Stacia Kane

Isabo Kelly

and her side-kick

Judi McCoy

Stacey Kade

Robin Rotham

Michelle Rowen

Jeri Smith-Ready

Jeanne C. Stein

Beth Williamson

The Bags of Swag

The mountain of books that came home with me.

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T00:11:00.003-04:00

You can buy this at art.com

Begin Braggin Here!

2009-04-09T00:00:00.004-04:00

Book one was good, book two was great and made the USA Today Bestseller list. Book 3 was freaking awesome... and made the New York Times Bestseller List.
Which is totally awesome,
and completely appropriate.
So head on over and tell Larissa congrats.

Weekend Update and Monday Poetry Train

2009-04-05T23:21:00.002-04:00

This has been a good weekend. I got to see some friends, did some writing and plotting, and worked in my friend's garden. At the moment I'm watching the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, so far it's been very good (this is only the second episode). I've been working on plotting the fourth draft of my urban fantasy, and started by writing a three sentence pitch for it. I'm including it here, so please let me know if it makes you want to read more:

A long-kept secret, a forgotten story begun millenia ago, and a family keepsake with untold (and unkown) powers. Grace's trip began as a graduation present, and a way for her to celebrate turning twenty one. No one told her she'd have to save the world before she could do so.

I'm also including a poem for Monday's Poetry Train, I've been working on this for a while, mostly when I've been sitting at a stop light watching the trees swaying in the breeze.

Long limbs sway
In the soft south wind
Bending slowly
Like dancers at the barre.
Warming muscles and joints
Before the rush of spring
As life leaps forward
In bud and bloom
And the symphony of spring
Waits in the wings.

It's late, and I have to work tomorrow morning, so I'll just say have a good night and a great week, and I'll be around tomorrow (or actually much later on today) to read the other poems.

I'm a Hero?

2009-03-22T13:05:00.002-04:00

I stole this from Angie, and thought it was pretty cool. What do you think?

Weekend Update

2009-03-14T22:58:00.002-04:00

moar funny pictures
So, just where did this week go? I'm still trying to figure that out. Once again the dayjob has taken the majority of my time (and gray cells). I did get a clean bill of health from the dentist, though. This weekend has been rest and recoup (and pay the bills), but tomorrow I hope to get some writing done (and some grocery shopping). I also have some posts planned for here, so come on back. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Weekend Update

2009-03-06T20:46:00.002-05:00

No memes this week, but I did want to get you all caught up. I probably won't post much this weekend, I've got a Romance Writer Group meeting tomorrow, and after Judi McCoy is having a book signing for her 1st dog walkers mysterie, so I'll probably go and hang out with her. I'm also writing again, and need to get my synopsis done, so I'll be working on that (and the usual clean the house, do the laundry, eat meals, feed the cat, take out the contacts, sleep, etc. *g*). So here are the highlights:
I drove up to Williamsburg to hang out with Mechele Armstrong and Larissa, went to my favorite used bookstore and took Larissa out to lunch to celebrate her great news. Her latest book made the USA Today Bestseller List *pause while the crowd goes wild*. Isn't that awesome? Completely well deserved, the book's awesome.
Driving up to W'burg, I happened to be going through the bridge-tunnel just as a destroyer was going over the tunnel. Spooky. It sounds like a dying whale or something, or a motorcycle on steroids.
I also went to training for two days (which is why I could go to W'burg on Thursday- it was my day off for working Sunday), which was very interesting (or would have been if I actually thought we'd be getting help to do all of this extra work- but we won't go there-it's bad for my blood pressure). the second day we were leaving the training and were stopped at a red light and looking to the side of the road I saw this mammoth rodent, i swear this puppy was groud hog big without the cute. I thought at first it was a rat (Ick), but now think it might have been a Nutria (A coworker had one in her back yard), and I just have to say WTH?!!! Nutrias in VA Beach?!!!! That's just wrong.
Larissa told me about this writing software just for novelists, WriteWay Pro, and I'm thinking of buying it. She showed it to me on her computer, and it would save me from papering the walls with postits (or at least more than are on them now), and from losing all of my notes.
I've got a mountain of books I want to have read by RT, so of course I've found a whole bunch of nonfiction books to check out and read (still working on Animal, Vegetable, Miracle- it's slow going when you only read a book at lunch).
I also replaced my cell phone, not that I used the first one a great deal, it's more in case the car breaks down. I'm getting ready for conference season.
Have a great weekend. I've also made a Facebook page, feel free to friend me. :)

Thursday Thirteen #57

2009-02-26T18:52:00.014-05:00

Thirteen Books I'd Like to Read Before RT (in April)

Apologies for the bad blogging, things have sort of settled down, and at last I've started writing again (draft 4 of the Urban Fantasy), which means I probably won't be blog hopping much either. I'll try, but the writing comes first (I've still got the synopsis to put together- oy). So here's my list
1)Industrial Magic by Kelley Armstrong (I've already read Bitten, Broken,Stolen, and Personal Demon- now I'd like to read them...in order).

2) Dangerous Games by Keri Arthur- now all I need to do is get a copy of book 6 and I'll be set.

3) Witch Blood by Anya Bast- I have it, I haven't read it yet, I'm sure I'll enjoy it when I do, and then I can read...

4) Witch Heart by Anya Bast

5) Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs

6) Accidental Human by Dakota Cassidy

7) Undead and Unwelcome by MaryJanice Davidson (okay, I'm not exactly sure where I am in the series, but wouldn't mind rereading).

8) Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris- I'm better about getting the books than watching the tv series- can never remember when it's on- or to remind myself that it is on.

9) The Outlaw Demon Wails by Kim Harrison- I know I need to catch up, so I can read...

10) White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison

11) Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead- this is her YA series and very interesting.

12) Succubus Dreams also by Richelle Mead

13) Pride by Rachel Vincent

Happy TT everyone. I'll try to post at least once a week to let you all know I haven't been abducted by aliens (and my change of address if I do).

Thursday Thirteen #56

2009-02-19T16:34:00.003-05:00

Okay, it's been a while, and I'm actually at dinner for the dayjob, so I don't have a lot of time. But I did want to post something, and as it is Thursday- I thought I'd post this. I got my refund! Which means I registered for RT! And the hotel! (very important when you no longer have peeps in Orlando you can mooch off of). So this is a (very basic) list of :

13 Authors I want to meet/ see again at RT

1. Larissa Ione (duh)- we're carpooling, she holds the car keys- I hope to see her at least twice on this trip. :) (I'm also going to be her minion at the booksignings).

2)MaryJanice Davidson- hanging out with her at last year's RT was fun.

3) Mechele Armstrong- always fun to hang with.

4) Keri Arthur- currently going through her Riley books like the book crack they are (highly addictive)- hope she can make it.

5) Anya Bast- I met her last year- I've read the first book in her series and enjoyed it, have the next two and hope to read them before April (Mt TBR collapsed- surprised no one else heard it).

6) Steve Berry- he's on the list- it'll be interesting to see if he attends.

7) Cathy Maxwell- I met her at a local conference and it's always nice to see her again.

8) Judi McCoy- I missed the meeting in January for her program, and just know she's gonna give me grief for that (for the record- I was suffering from charliehorses that morning- both legs).

9) Richelle Mead- I'm currently addicted to both of her series (and have all of the Vampire Academy books in the library)- and am interested in hearing her programs.

10) Carole Nelson Douglas- Read Dancing with Werewolves and also Brimstone Kiss, and very interested in what comes next. I mean Vampires in Vegas (that's a duh if I ever heard one).

11) Jordan Summers- she's on the list in their book- not sure if it's true but I would love to meet her after reading her blog for so long.

12) Shiloh Walker- I met her last year, and read her blog regularly.

13) Sasha White- I met her last year too, and also read her blog regularly.

14) Lori Foster- okay, she's not on the list- I couldn't resist (too much caffeine and birthday cake)- I apologize to Lori for the wild goose chase. :)

I'll try to get around to the other TTs, but after work I'm going to register for LF's get together, and then tomorrow I'm heading to WB for the day. Hangin' with my peeps. Have a great weekend.

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Books Galore!

2009-02-14T23:55:00.004-05:00

So I went to Barnes & Noble today, and ran into some old friends. Larissa Ione and Michele Willingham. The first time I met Larissa was at her first book signing, and the last time I saw Michele was at the same signing. In fact I posted pictures from their first signing here. A lot has happened in the year and a half, for all of us.

They both have new books out, and I got signed copies of both:

I also finally got my own signed copy of Snowbound.

Now I've got three great books to curl up with. :)

Books for OZ

2009-02-12T11:48:00.002-05:00

Okay, I totally stole this from Charli's blog, but it's a good thing and it helps out the people who lost everything in the fires that devestated Australia recently.

Got extra books? Want to send some book relief to Australia? Help the Romance Writers of Australia help others.

As well as raising money for the bushfire victims at their annual conference, Romance Writers of Australia are launching a Bushfire Book Appeal. It's a small thing; we know that for many affected families, books will not be high on their list of necessities for some time to come, but we also know how valuable books can be in providing time out when reality gets tough.
So if you can help, we'd be grateful.

What we need? FICTION BOOKS! Romance books, children's books, genre books, whatever – either new or in sparkling condition.

Please send them to:
RWA Bushfire Book Appeal
c/- 89 Rennie St
Thornbury
Vic. 3071
AUSTRALIA

When to send them? Now! And any time over the next few months. The books will be boxed
and delivered to the appropriate neighbourhood centres/community centres/libraries in batches as soon as practicable. Feel free to pop
a note inside, or if you're the author, sign the book.

Monday's Poetry Train

2009-02-08T21:16:00.002-05:00

It's been a while since I've posted any poetry, on the other hand it's been a while since I've written any poetry, so I thought I'd repost one, maybe it'll be new to some of you. Even if not, I hope you enjoy it.

Constellations

Coy Cupid's wicked dart
Catches the Hunter unawares
Watching the seven Sisters
Dancing to the music of time.
The dart flies true,
Loosing Orion's bow.
The Dipper tips
The milky way slips,
And stars fall down like rain.
Glittering diamond dust.
Tears of sorrow,
Tears of joy,
Tears of completion,
of ecstasy as I kiss
The constellations speckled
Across your skin
As freckles.

Brag! Brag! Brag!

2009-02-07T14:43:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I had a lot of plans for today, and none of them to like they're going to happen: my get up and go... never got up. But I did want to brag on the great news of one of my blog buddies.

Joely Sue Burkhart sold her novel Letters to an English Professor to SAMHAIN! It's getting a new title, but the story is an awesome one, and I think this is going to be the start of something great for her. Pretty soon, she'll be in print (Joely said I was prophetic, so it must be true).

One last thing, this picture is from the dayjob's renovation.

Doesn't that look like a cozy spot do curl up with a good book? That's what I did Friday, put together four of these chairs (and find places around children's to put them).
I also put more pictures of the renovation on the
dayjob's blog evidently the first time I forgot to take any pictures of the new configuration of our public computers (and as we have 25 of them in the main room and 5 more in the training lab- they're kind of hard to miss). So feel free to go over and take a peek, and leave a comment.
(You know you want to :) ).

News

2009-02-05T16:50:00.002-05:00

The Renovation of the dayjob is finished, and it looks great. I was going to post one of the pictures here, but it's not cooperating. If you want to take a look, go here and you'll see what it looks like now. We ended up being closed for three days, and we're all walking around sore, stiff, and tired. Thank God for Friday. :)

Weekend Update #3

2009-01-31T12:44:00.002-05:00

more animals
Apologies again for the long gap between blog posts, things have still been hellaciously busy at the day job, but it's almost over. We finally finished weeding the library. In the past months, we've weeded: Large print (twice), fiction (thrice), audiobooks, nonfiction, ya (took out almost half of that collection), children's (nonfiction, fiction, and picture books), and reference. The only things we didn't do were the dvds and the music cds, both could use weeding but not as badly as the rest of the collection. The rearranging has already started, they came in Friday and put in the new circ desk. It looks really good. I'd post a picture but can't seem to get into the dayjob email from home. Monday and Tuesday will involve paint, and moving (almost all) furniture, rewiring for computers, moving books, cleaning (Dusting), and god knows what else.
So needless to say, not much has been happening on the home front.
I did do my taxes, and will get enough back to take both trips this year (to RT and to Lori Foster's even in Ohio- Yay!), and at some point I'll make a trip home to see my family.
Once I recover from Monday and Tuesday, I hope to get back to a more regular posting schedule, as well as a more regular writing schedule.
So I hope everyone has a great weekend, enjoys the Super Bowl, and (where necessary) stays warm.

Weeken Update #2

2009-01-17T22:42:00.002-05:00

more animals
Today is day 2 of a 4 day weekend. As far as I can tell, this is the first four day weekend that I've had in 8 years that didn't involve annual leave (or some wench named Isabel *g*). Yesterday I actually went out in the below freezing temps to do some shopping (which involved Not finding more work clothes and then finding a couple of books at the BAM in VA Beach). This morning I woke with my back aching (not very bad, but with the feeling that it could become very bad if I wasn't careful) and spent the day surfing the net and watching movies on tv, and this evening I started getting my books in order (and adding books to my Library Thing- feel free to go look- there's a link on the sidebar). I'm currently reading Amy Knupp's new book (The Secret She Kept), which is very good, I'll probably finish it tonight.
Not much to report on the writing front. Yet. The brain is still recovering from the week of weeding (the entire library at work), but I've been getting ideas, and need to start writing them down soon (they start taking over ya know). Before I get mugged by plotbunnies.
So how has everyone been? Read any good books lately?
I've been going through my books, and found several duplicates, and thought I'd offer them up for trade, if anybody wanted them. I can post them tomorrow. Just let me know. Thanks.

Weekend Update

2009-01-10T21:51:00.002-05:00

see more puppies
That's what I've been doing this weekend, so far. I woke up early this morning with charley horses, in both legs. Went back to sleep and slept in, missing my writing group's monthly meeting. Leg muscles are still sore, but not cramping (yay). I hope to get something done tomorrow, at least.
I did have some fun, at least. After work Friday, Jean and I went to the Waldenbooks that is closing, and we picked up some good bargains. I got:
Rescue Me by Jaci Burton
The Treasure by Beth Williamson
Pack Challenge by Shelly Laurentson
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
The Host by Stephenie Meyer
Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan
Dawn Keepers by Jessica Andersen
Veil of Midnight by Lara Adrian
Devil Inside by Jenna Black
Devil You Know also by Jenna Black (autographed)
A Twilight Bookmark
An Origami Kit
and
2 small, 1 medium, and 1 large Picadilly notebooks
Plans for the coming week: get my receipts in order so I can fill out my taxes as soon as I get my w2s, and organize my bookcases (it's also that time of the year when the wooden bookcases need another rubdown with lemon oil- to keep them from drying out). Next weekend is a four-day weekend for me, but no plans yet. Any suggestions?

New Year's Goals 2009

2008-12-31T22:39:00.002-05:00

So before the New Year comes, I thought I'd write down what my goals are for the coming year. Not much different from last year, but at least if I write them down I'll have something to aim for. So here they are:
1) Get more exercise- I'm going to keep up with the Tai Chi, but need to add to it. I'm thinking of joining the Y, using the indoor swimming pool and maybe the (dreaded) treadmill.
2) Get more writing done- and keep track of how much I write throughout the year. Specific goals: rewrite the urban fantasy, finish book 2 of the fantasy, and if there's enough time- work on finishing the novel that started as a short story.
3) Three submissions this year- one is already planned, so it should be doable.
4) Attend the RT conference in Orlando (and meet even more of my blog buddies).
5) Loose weight- I'm thinking of doing the Atkins for the first month and then switching to Weight Watchers)
6) Organize my apartment- still working on this one.
7) Post more on my blog.
8) Read more nonfiction (some of those books are going to come from the Great Books list).
9) Eat out less (and invite my friends over for dinner more often).
That's all I can think of at the moment, and it is now 2009, so I will say Happy New Year, and good night. :)

Year in Review (sort of)

2008-12-29T22:32:00.002-05:00

more animals
I'm back from vacation, psycho is back from the vets, and I'm in the middle of an allergy/sinus attack that's got me whooped. So I thought I'd go back to my goals for this year and see how I did before going on to make my resolutions for the new year.
1) Get more exercise- I started walking last year and managed to keep at it all year, this year I would like to increase the number of times each week, the distance walked, and add some variety to my routine. Say 3 times a week. 15000 steps a day, and maybe go on some hiking day trips. I'm not sure about the more, but I did manage to go to Tai Chi regularly (for the most part) and to keep it up for the whole year.
2) Get more writing done- again I've managed to keep up (for the most part) with what I intended to do last year, but this year I would like to increase my output and write on a regular basis. Okay this was a total bust, life was insane this year.
3) Submit two manuscripts and work on two more (not sure if I could finish them, but get them started- I have one that is started that I should be able to finish a first draft). I did get one submission in (and rejected) and am working on the second, so yay.
4) Attend the RT Conference in Pittsburgh (and get to meet my blog buddies). This I did, and had a blast, and intend to go to RT next year in Orlando.
5) Lose weight (I figured I'd start with a reasonable number- as soon as I come up with one). Sigh.
6) Organize my apartment (again I've started this, just going to continue working on it). Still working on it.
7) Not spend all of my writing time blog hopping- when I sit down to work I will set a reasonable goal and complete it before I go online and read everybody's blogs. Still working on this too.
8) Read more nonfiction- need to widen my horizons, and stretch my brain more. I'm thinking of starting the History of the English Speaking Peoples by Winston Churchill (of course I left the first volume at my mom's house but I'm sure the library has it). Nope, this year was a big ole fiction glut. :)
9) Keep better track of how I spend my money- there are a few big ticket items that I'm looking at and I think if I kept track of what I bought I'd be able to swing a few of them. Actually with the online banking this is getting easier, just wish I could have skipped having the purse stolen to get it. And I was able to swing a couple of the big ticket items: a full sized bed, with new pillows and sheets and blankets, as well as a new toast oven, the laptop went on the credit card so that doesn't count.
10) Limit the number of meals I eat out- this would help the budget and the diet. Another nope, not eating out would require regular grocery shopping.
11) Update my work wardrobe- sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and go clothes shopping (bleh). I did, and yet somehow need to do this again. Bleh.
12) Get in touch with people I haven't written or called in a long time. I'm getting better at this.
13) Try not to let the dayjob drive me totally bonkers, and possibly work towards one day not needing to work a dayjob (I can dream- right?) Too late.

On the Road Again

2008-12-20T17:50:00.002-05:00

more animals
Before I shut George down to get ready to fly home for Christmas, I wanted to tell everyone to have a Happy Hannukah, and a Merry Christmas. I'll try to check in while I'm on vacation, but not sure about the internet access. So have a safe a happy holidays.