Have You Ever...?

Today is the first Wednesday in April, which means it's time for Insecure Writer's Support Group. My topic for today is...have you ever?

Have you ever sat down and studied why you write and where you write the best? Do you like music playing or silence? Do you write long hand or type? Do you write sequentially or piece stories together from random chapters?

No matter which way I turn, I hear the small insistent voice of my high school English grammar teacher raising sand because I'm using commas wrong, or writing in sentence fragments. How do you explain to a memory that writers today have more freedom to ignore the rules than they did 30 years ago?

I confess, I do follow the rules more than many. I like the semi-comma. I like using it; it has merit. But I recently  had a critique who told me the semi-comma died years ago from lack of understanding. Just use a comma, or a separate sentence. I don't like that. So do I buckle to peer pressure or keep using an archaic punctuation symbol because I know its power?

If someone won't publish a story because of a semi-colon, maybe I am in the wrong profession. That seems trivial; which means it's probably true.

Happy April everyone. I am not participating in the April A to Z Blog Challenge this year - too many personal things going on, but I should have a book coming out this month. Stay tuned for more details!

March Madness

Today is the first Wednesday in March, which means Insecure Writer's Support Group blog hop. (Gee, I hope I am still on the list!)

I'm having a hard time getting focused. Currently on my computer there are four WIPs that at any time I could finish up and start editing, but lately all I feel capable of is existing. My energy is at an all time low and creatively my mind is all over the place.

Every story line is different, so you think I would be able to focus on either saving my action hero and his wife from the mad bomber who is chasing them, or help the poor soul I've left floundering in a morass of negative emotions due to personal angst. Perhaps I could work on my werewolves who are being encroached by humans and are looking to move to the wilds of Canada to live free, or send my alter-ego into the fray to fight against darkness and tyranny.

Or perhaps, I'll grab a bowl of cereal and sit in the recliner watching back to back episodes of "Cheaters" and wondering if my helpful hubby needs stalking, I mean watching.

Wow, I need a break.

I need to sit on the beach with my toes in the sand contemplating the tan of Joey the Cabana Boy as he brings me another virgin Strawberry Daiquiri. I need to stare into the horizon and wonder at the magnitude of our world and our place in it. But perhaps, most of all, I need peace in my life.

I have a teenage daughter going through the pains of first love, a grown son with a touch of hypochondria, and a husband so ready to retire he spends as little time in the office as he can get away with. I need something. I'm not sure what it is, but the feeling of being put upon is growing by the day. If things don't reach equilibrium soon, there might be an incident which may or may not land me on the 6:00 news.

Don't get me wrong, I love my family. Maybe this is just a mid-life crisis rearing its ugly head, but my writing is suffering and I'm looking for answers not more questions. Some days my heart feels it will explode from the effort of remaining smiling and pleasant.

But don't forget to keep an eye on the headlines - after all, I am a writer. I kill people in my head everyday. The real trick is to not do it in real life.

Spring is Teasing Me and I Don't Like It!

Yesterday it was hard to believe it was the second day of March. The sun was shining, birds were singing, gnats were swarming, and everywhere you felt the anticipation Spring always brings to our little corner of the South. The high was nearing 70, and all seemed right in the universe.

Yeah, right.

Today, again, it is cold, rainy, windy, and we are under a freeze warning for tonight. So much for Spring, Winter is not going gently into that good night. Instead, it seems bound and determined to hold on until the last possible moment, guaranteeing no early planting or easy weather.

That's right, folks, it's tornado season down here in the land of the Boiled Peanut.

I've lived through hurricanes, him-a-canes, snow-canes, and more but the thought of tornado season always fills me with dread. They strike anywhere and at anytime. It's like waiting for your mother-in-law to show up with her crazy sister to set up residence in your basement. I would rather face two Katrina's than one tornado. But that's just me.

I will sleep with one ear tuned to the weather radio, waiting for that annoying blast of the tornado siren to send us all downstairs to the laundry room (our only windowless room). Until the winds blow constantly from the south and the cold weather and snow are only distant memories, I will keep a weather eye on the horizon and stay close to shore in case of emergencies.

After all, it's only 110 more days until summer!

Chasing Away the Winter Blues

I suffer from the Winter Blues. You know, that feeling that everything will remain grey and damp forever and you stop shaving your legs because they are constantly hidden underneath wool and it's too cold to spend that much time in the shower anyway? When the Christmas decoration stay up until February just because they are colorful and give you hope that spring is a-comin'?

Or is that just me?

Once the holidays are over I often find myself staring at the sleeping Bermuda grass in my front yard while sipping my chai latte and wondering what the neighbors would do it I were to spray the whole darn thing with green paint. Then the sun sets again and I wonder how long it would take to send me over the edge if I lived in Alaska, which sends me to the Internet looking for warm vacation sites.

Don't get me wrong, I love snow as much as the next person. I love the way it snows down here. In one week you can go from ice storm and snow blizzard to shorts and flip flops. This time of year we get all four seasons in a standard ten to fifteen day rotation, and deciding on the day's attire usually requires the use of the Weather Channel and the National Weather Service website.

As we head into March, we still have at least one more snow event to come. How do I know this? Because the first lay on the ground for two days. The old wives' tale I was always told is you will receive as many snowfalls as the number of days the first lay on the ground. I know there are other tales and methods for determining this, some of which include actual science-y stuff but as for me, I'll stick with what I know.

So, with one channel on the remote tuned to the Olympics and the other the 24-hour radar site with up to the minute Doppler radar, I am off to attempt some writing. That is, unless I need to make an emergency trip to the grocery store for batteries, bread and milk.

Gotta be prepared for the next go round.

I Live Down South, and I Know How to Drive

This is a scene that was replayed all over Atlanta and the Metro area. Once again out state was unprepared for another extreme weather situation. People slept in their cars, in stores and as stations, in strangers' houses and warming centers.

The problem was, the forecast kept changing and by the time people realized the storm was coming farther north than expected, it was too late. People were already streaming out of their offices and 6 million people hit the now covered streets heading for their homes. Or at least that's what they attempted.

We don't have enough snow day to warrant the purchase of snow removal equipment. So the DOT, and the state, and the mayor of Atlanta all blame each other and remind everyone how muck better this response was compared to 2011.

I think what we should take away is this: is the weather says snow, be sure you have water, blankets, food, and a phone charger in your car. Also, don't be afraid to leave your vehicle and walk to warmth. Many people created social media sites to link up those who were stranded to those who were will to help out. Pure Southern hospitality in action, how I love my adopted home.

So I will stay inside for tonight and probably tomorrow as well. But at lease we can say we saw snow this year. It will be very interesting to see what happens on Groundhog day.

COVER REVEAL - January Frost

COMING SOON FROM KEITH PUBLISHING

JANUARY FROST

Evelyn Graham-Frost had it all, an award winning career showing her champion stallion, Snowman all over the world; wealth business partners who adore her and her daughter, and freedom from the painful memories of her past. For ten years everything has been a storybook existence. But every high has its opposite.

Looking Forward in 2014

I'm feeling cautiously optimistic for this new year. Everything seems to foretell the promise of an excellent year. Not like 2013. Never have a had a year I was so happy to see leave. The past few years haven't been all the best. I've lost family, dear friends, my sanity - all within the past four years and frankly, I'm ready for a different outcome.

To that end, I have made a promise to myself to write more, especially in my blogs. That's always the first sign my life is turning somersaults, I stop writing. Over time, I forget how much I enjoy writing, and how much I want to succeed at this venture. By the time I'm ready to stop the home grown pity party, I'll be one set of ragged flannel sweatpants away from full blown catatonia.

But not this year. This year I shall rise above the excesses of my mental health and focus on the stories. There are several rolling around upstairs. My favorite is an action romance. It's beginning to take shape and if I'm happy with this pass perhaps I will share a snippet with everyone for inspection.

I do have a new novel coming out soon. January Frost, from Keith Publishing's Hearts & Arrows line is in the home stretch. As soon as the artwork is approved and the final edits done, it will be ready. I'm very excited for this one, my first romance novel.

So, as I leave to settle in for a long winter evening of writing, I leave you with the blurb for January Frost. Stay warm everyone, and I see you again soon - I Promise!

Blurb: Evelyn Graham-Frost has everything: a fabulous boss, an award winning stallion to ride, and a daughter to bring sunshine into her days. But when a career ending fall throws everything in flux, Evelyn finds herself retreating to the one place she tried so hard to escape – her childhood home at Grey Cliffs Stables.

Going home means confronting her past with the only man she ever loved, Trey Tattinger. Ten years ago she ran away from the violence and hatred of Trey’s alcoholic father David. She gave birth to Trey’s child in secret. Now all the secrets and shame must be exposed, and Evelyn will learn that in order to go forward, sometimes you have to go back to the beginning.