Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I'm not really doing too much writing related. I'm waiting for feedback from my beta readers and editor. It will probably be another week before I hear from any of them.

Motivational Quote:  "Don't stress out thinking about what's the next step? What's the plan? What am I doing next?...I feel like sometimes I don't enjoy the present moment and what's happening in my life right now because I'm always thinking, where am I going to be? What am I going to do?" ~ Nailea Devora (American comedian)

What I'm Reading:  I just finished The Me I Used to Be by Kristan Higgins. This is a stand alone women's fiction novel. I really enjoyed this book. The end made me a bit teary which is always a sign of a good book for me. If I can identify with the character(s) so much that I get teary over what they're going through then the author has done a great job writing the story. 

Random Things:  I can't believe we're starting the first full week of October already. It seems like it was just May. While I'm looking forward to autumn and the cooler weather and changing of the leaves, I'm feeling a bit anxious that there are only about 3 months left in the year. I still have a lot of things I'd like to get accomplished by the end of 2026 and less than 90 days to get them done. 

Random Photo:

My first attempt at making sourdough chocolate chip cookies. They came out pretty well. I'd definitely make them again.. 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I have a very rough draft of the back cover copy. It definitely needs refining, maybe complete rewriting. 😄  I'm not planning on doing any writing this week. I'm having minor surgery on my right foot tomorrow so I'm not sure how I'll feel the rest of the week. If I'm not in too much pain, I may work on rewriting the back cover copy. 

Motivational Quote:  "A lot of people...think you have to do something extraordinary to lead a meaningful life. But ordinary, humble lives are also full of meaning." ~ Emily Esfahani Smith (Swiss Canadian writer and speaker)

What I'm Reading:  I'll be starting either The Briar Club by Kate Quinn or Our Italian Summer by Jennifer Probst sometime this evening. I can't decide which one I want to read first. 

Random Things:  I came across the above quote and it made me reflect on my own life. I live a quiet life with a small circle of friends. I'm happy with my life. I don't feel like it's any less meaningful than anyone else's. I don't like to travel or go to places where there are a lot of people. It may be because I'm an introvert, but I would rather be home than anywhere else.   

Random Photo:

                      I found a small cluster of violets at the edge of the garden this year. 
 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  It was a good week. I feel like I made good progress adding more words than I deleted while I worked on revising the first section of Garrett's story. 

Motivational Quote:  "Power is the ability to achieve purpose." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. 

What I'm Reading:  I started reading The Summer We Started Over by Nancy Thayer yesterday afternoon. I haven't read anything by Ms. Thayer before.  

Random Things:  The quote above seemed really appropriate after last week. I used my power to get things done especially since I think I have a case of the winter blues. I didn't feel like doing anything but cuddling on the sofa with a book and a blanket and one of the cats last week. Despite feeling like that, I still made writing or I should say revising Garrett's book a priority and of course doing the every day things that life requires (cooking, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping). Once I finished everything that needed to be done, then I indulged my desire to lounge on the sofa. I'm hoping this feeling of not wanting to do anything passes soon. 

Random Photo:

                                 I hope you had a fun and happy Valentine's Day

Monday Check In

 Last week...

Writing Related:  I didn't meet my weekly page count goal last week. I had a couple of appointments and two of the expected great nieces/nephews were born. One is a girl named Gia Harper and the other is a boy named Rhys James. They were born 3 days apart. Needless to say I spent more time visiting the new babies and their parents and siblings than I did writing. I'll be back on track this week.

Motivational Quote: "Because you've made one, or a few, not-so-great decisions today, doesn't mean you need to throw the rest of the day in the garbage. Those decisions are in the past. This next minute, this next decision, is still in play." ~ Glenn Patrick Doyle

What I'm Reading: I'm about a third of the way through For the Love of Summer by Susan Mallery. I enjoy both her romance and women's fiction novels but I'm having a bit of a problem liking one of the main characters in this book. I'm hoping as I get further along in the book, I'll change my mind. 

Random Things:  It's going to be cold and rainy with highs in the 40's in my area the first part of the week so we've pushed our visit to the pumpkin farm from Wednesday to Friday when it's supposed to be sunny and about 60 degrees. I do want to purchase a pumpkin, but I'm not sure I'll carve it. I might just draw a face on it instead. I'm not that talented when it comes to pumpkin carving. 

Random Photo:

This is about as creative as I get when it comes to pumpkin carving other than the usual triangle eyes and nose and jigsaw type teeth.
 

 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  Camp NaNoWriMo is held in April and July. I participated in the camp in April and didn't quite make my goal. I want to push really hard this month and finish Caine's book so instead of doing Camp again in July, I'm doing it this month. I figure I've got about 40k left to write if I follow my plot outline. That should be doable this month if I don't waste time and write when I should instead of doing other things. 

Motivational Quote: "When you're given an opportunity to change your life, be ready to do whatever it takes to make it happen. The world doesn't give things, you take things. ~ Taylor Jenkins Reid

What I'm Reading: I'm about halfway through Look on the Bright Side by Kristan Higgins. I'm feeling kind of ambivalent about it and hoping it gets better in the second half. I usually enjoy Ms. Higgins' books, this one, not so much as of right now.

Random Thoughts: I'm going to have some extra free time so I'm hoping to get a lot of small projects done this summer. I started a list of things I want to get done (mainly things around the house) and ended up with 25 items on my list. Thankfully, some of them are quick, tiny projects that I can knock out in 30 minutes or so, maybe less. I just couldn't seem to find the time to do them. Now that I have an actual list of things I want to take care of, it'll be easier to get them done, I hope. And I'll have that sense of accomplishment as I cross each completed project off. 

Random Photo:

   I find Mrs. Green cuddled up with the strangest things...like the cord to my laptop.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I actually managed to get some writing done after more days than I care to admit without getting anything done. I feel like I'm getting back on track. 

Motivational Quote: "Wake up determined. Go to bed satisfied. And somewhere in between eat a cookie." ~ Dwayne Johnson.

What I'm Reading: I started The Sister Effect by Susan Mallery this past weekend. I was looking for something that would be a light, quick read and this book seemed like a good choice. 

Random Thoughts: We had a very mild winter with very little snow and higher than normal temperatures. The first full day of spring brought three inches of snow and it's snowed every day since. We got eight inches last Friday night into Saturday. It was sunny yesterday and a tiny bit warmer so here's hoping that was winter's last hurrah and spring weather will be here to stay.

Random Photo:

The snow threatened our barely there daffodil buds so I cut them and brought them inside hoping they would still bloom. They all did. Please ignore Mrs. Green. She loves flowers and had to check them out.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related: I'm still having problems sitting comfortably even propped with pillows so sitting for any length of time trying to write has been difficult. I've started to use just heat on my ribs as it seems to help more than the ice does. I'm hoping to get more than a few pages written this week. As much as I didn't want to, I made the decision to push the release date for Caine's book to May. I'm not sure how long it will be before I'm able to get back to my normal writing schedule and think it's best to give myself an extra month to meet the revised publishing deadline. 

Motivational Quote:  "It's not about the accomplishment, it's about the very slow and grueling work of just getting better at something over time. It always takes time." ~ Mary H.K. Choi

What I'm Reading: I started reading The Summer Book Club by Susan Mallery yesterday afternoon. It's a stand alone women's fiction novel. I've read nearly all of the books Ms. Mallery has published and enjoy them whether they are romance or women's fiction.

Random Thoughts:  I'm looking forward to the solar eclipse on April 8th. I took the day off from the day job because the city where I live is in the direct path and my work day ends about 30 minutes before the total eclipse is supposed to happen. I wanted to ensure I would be home and not stuck on the highway during that time. Have you made any special plans around the eclipse? 

Random Photo:

    The cat's version of "I'm too hot and need to stick my foot outside the blanket."
 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related: I heard back from my beta readers and editor on Mississippi's story. It was all good feedback but...Eek! It seems the story suffers from a sagging middle. I have quite a bit of rewriting and editing to do so the middle doesn't slow the pace down like it apparently does now. Other than the first part of the middle section dragging and a few minor tweaks such as adding a bit more description in some scenes and changing a couple of areas where there's more telling than showing, the manuscript seems to be in good shape over all. 

Motivational Quote: "Yes, I am optimistic, but one must go through a long period of purgatory." ~ Eugene Ionesco. For the most part, I try to keep an optimistic outlook, but some days it's harder than others. 😀

What I'm Reading: I still reading Second Chance Spring by JoAnn Ross. I set it aside to read A Little Ray of Sunshine by Kristan Higgins which I'd had on hold at my local library for weeks. When I was notified the book was available for me to borrow/pick up, I knew I'd need to read it asap because other people were waiting to borrow it and I wouldn't be able to renew it if I didn't have it done by the time it was due back.

Random Things:  It's time for school supply sales. While I don't have anyone in school, I shop the school supply sales to stock up on index cards, pens, one subject spiral notebooks, composition books, and Post-It notes. I use these items all year long in my writing, so I pick them up at the cheaper prices while I can. In my area right now, one subject notebooks are on sale for 25 cents. Packages of plain white index cards are on sale for the same price. Composition books are on sale for 50 cents. Can't beat those prices. 

Random Photo:

 

A miniature sunflower that I grew in a pot from a seed. I'm really happy about it. I don't usually have good luck growing flowers in pots.

 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related: The first chapter of the third book in my Echo Company series is written. I was able write much more than I expected despite my mom and I having a couple of appointments during the week. 

Motivational Quote: "To succeed you have to believe in something with such a passion that it becomes a reality." ~ Dame Anita Roddick

What I'm Reading: I finished reading The Stepsisters by Susan Mallery last night. I haven't decided what I'll read next.

Random Things: We're caught up on the Virgin River series on Netflix so we've decided to start watching The Queen's Gambit as we both have heard good things about it.

Random Photo:

                                     Somebody hiding from the vacuum cleaner.

 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related: I only managed to get 15 pages written last week. My mom and I both had doctor appointments (on different days of course) that ate into my writing time.

Motivational Quote: "I truly believe that we can overcome any hurdle that lies before us and create the life we want to live." ~ Gillian Anderson

What I'm Reading: I started reading The Friendship List by Susan Mallery over the weekend. I'm a big fan of Ms. Mallery and have read most of her books.

Random Things: I'm so happy it's March, though February seemed to go by pretty quickly. The closer we get to spring, the happier I am. I'm done with snow and brutally cold weather.

Random Photo:

 You know your cat did something wrong when he tries to hide between the sofa cushions.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related -- I had a pretty good week compared to recent weeks. I feel like I can finally see the end of the editing/rewriting tunnel. 

Motivational Quote: "Trust that still, small voice that says, 'This might work and I'll try it.'" ~ Diane Mariechild

What I'm Reading: I'll be starting How Lulu Lost Her Mind by Rachel Gibson tonight. 

Random Things: I'm fighting the urge to bake cookies. The problem with baking cookies is then I want to eat them. And not just one or two. Every time I walk by the container, the cookies call to me and I find it nearly impossible to leave the kitchen without one in hand. 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related -- I started out well, then hit a wall. I have a scene I need to rewrite/rework and am struggling with it. I've tried writing it from one character's point of view, but I think I need to try it from the other character's point of view. 

Motivational Quote: "Don't be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart." ~ Roy T. Bennett

What I'm Reading:  I started Coldwater Warm Hearts Club by Lexi Eddings last night. It was shelved in the contemporary romance section at the library, but I think it's more women's fiction than romance. I am enjoying it though. I've never read anything by this author before. I came across the book while I was perusing the shelves waiting for my mom. 

Random Things:  I tacked up calendar pages for October and November on the wall to help me keep track of things both writing and non-writing related as we move through the last part of year. I used push pins. Wow, were they hard to push into the wall! I was able to get just enough of the point into the wall to hold the papers. That's it. If this tracking system works and I end up doing it throughout 2021, I'm going to need to invest in a cork board to tack the pages to instead.