Be Jolly By Golly Blogfest

I want to thank all of you who commented on my entry for Francine's Twisted Christmas Fairytale. Again, I apologize for not getting it done. When I finish, I will post it.

My third blogfest in a week, whew. Thanks to Jen and Melissa for hosting this.

Well, I don't have a certain recipe or drink recipe so I decided to make a list. Did you notice, I do that a lot? Here are things to get into the spirit.

1. Decorate a tree. Yep, this is my tree. Some of the ornaments are concentrated in the front. My daughter likes to "set things up." My son just breaks them.

2. Watch Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer with your kids or by yourself (nothin' wrong with that).

Such a cute little fellow.

3. Listen to Christmas music. "Do they know it's Christmas?" and "Happy Christmas (War is Over)" are my favs, along with some classics--"White Christmas" anyone? 

4. Watch your fav Christmas movie (other than cartoons). Mine-Elf (cause it's hilarious) and Love, Actually (British things make me gush. Yes, I love all things British, and it's a romance--double win).

5. Make cookies. Hey, nothing wrong with these.

Although, these look delicious.

6. Spend time with family and friends. Nothing like catching up with these folks.

This is the cover of a childrens book. My family seems to always be silly.

7. Have a theme dinner. We host Christmas dinner and sometimes put a theme to it. This year--Bavarian Christmas. Since we spent time in Munich, Germany over the summer (yes, fell in love with it), we decided to host a Christmas dinner inspired by Bavaria. Of course, we will be drinking this (see below) with our dinner.

Gluhwein (mulled red wine). Tasty when warm.



8. Don't forget to smush those pets. My two monsters.

Leia (the black and white one) and Chloe (the black one). No, Chloe's eyes do not glow. That would be so cool, though.

9. Drive around and look at houses that are decorated.

Not my house, but lots of lights.

10. Enjoy every moment. Take it all in. A year has gone by. Celebrate, love, hope, and dream. A new year is starting, and so many possibilites await.

My posts will be random over the next two weeks. Guests, presents, kiddos, hubs, family time, friends...you see where this is going. It gets busy so posts will not be on schedule. Don't forget, January 2nd is Frankie's 2nd Annual No Kiss Blogfest, I'm signed up for this one. I better get crackin'.

I do plan to start my regular schedule on January 3rd. It turns out it is my first year blogoversary so stay tuned for that, and some other goodies I have up my sleeve--like Writing the Next Line Blogfest. Yeah, you heard me. I also plan to spruce up the old blog. We will see.

What are your plans and holiday traditions?

I want to wish all of you a wonderful holiday. This year has been one that has made me so happy (even though there were a lot of ups and downs). I have found me and my passion and I'm not letting it go.

Enjoy! You guys rock!

Francine's Twisted Christmas Fairytale Blogfest

So, I didn't get too far on my entry. I'm so embarrassed. Please go here for all the other entries. I decided to just post what I have so far. Lame, I know. This may develop into a new idea for me. I took Sleeping Beauty and Beauty and the Beast added a YA feel. I hope to finish it, and when I do I'll post it. In the meantime, here is all I got. *hides in the corner*

Blind Beauty

I ran my hands over the buttons, trying to feel for the double lines. The message I received two days ago was the most frightening yet. After adjusting my earbuds, the message started. Static at first, then a deep computerized voice, “You will sleep forever, if your true love doesn’t kiss you by midnight on your 17th birthday.” Chills ran down my spine…today's my 17th birthday. The school bell drowned out the message, indicating the time was three.

Feet shuffling, students whispering, chairs sliding, surrounded me. I reached down for my cane; the only thing to help me see. My lifeline after the ‘accident’, at least that was the ruling. Two years have passed, and Gwen Stuben still roams these halls free. She claims the acid we used for Chem. Lab simply slipped from her fingers, landing on my eyes. If you ask me, she performed some sort of spell because the glass jar seemed to float into the air, almost hovering, before it dumped on my face. I’ve been told the skin looks like craters with cloudy globes for my eyes. Freakish. Needless to say no one would want to ask me out, hence my worry to try and find the love of my life today. If I have not found that person yet, then…I shook my head as the warm air tickled my skin as I made my way through the doors.


I waived my cane back and forth till I hit the bench. Hands grabbed my bag, pullling it off my arms. I twisted around then fell. Wicked cackles stung my ears.


"That's for making him break up with me." Gwen sharp words slapped me.


"I didn't do..." The coarse sidewalk scraped my fingertips as I patted it, looking for my cane. A loud snap made me stop.


"Try and find your way now." A stick hit my face. Gwen's stomps faded. Warm, tears came down my cheeks. What did I do to her?

Another set of footsteps approached.  "Rose, let me help you." Ryland's sweet voice ceased my tears.

Okay, so that's what I got, sorry for the unfinished entry. Please check out the other entries because they will rock.

Thanks Francine.

Have a wonderful weekend! I'll be checking out the other entries.






Fun Facts Friday

Thanks again to all of you who participated in The Crazy Holiday Blogfest. Go here to see the awesome entries.

1. Somehow how I got behind with the whole holiday thing. Overwhelmed is how I feel.

2. We started a new tradition in our house. A book and little elf. It's called "Elf on a Shelf". There's a story and the elf watches the kids then reports to santa at night (a little creepy, yes). Each day he is sitting in a new place. Doesn't really work (keeping the kids in line). I need the elf to wrap presents and shop.

3. I'm addicted to Chocolate Cheerios.

4. I'm going to skip Writing the Next Line this month. With the holidays, everyone is busy so I will plan to start it back up in January.

5. It is bitter cold here. Unusual, yes. Do I like it? What do you think? It's warmer in Munich.

6. I'm supposed to be in a blogfest tomorrow. I may not get my entry done (see below for the reason). Check out Francine's Twisted Christmas Fairytale Blogfest.

7. I enjoy getting comments and email. I'm addicted to checking both constantly.

8. One blinker on my car is palpitating super fast while the other one is normal. Weather perhaps?

9. Reason my entry for the blogfest tomorrow may not be done. We are having renovations done to our house. Last week new windows, this week new front door. This is not the whole problem. Yesterday, the condinsate pump froze in our heater, leaving me with a nice surprise of water in my basement. To top it all off, the presents I just wrapped for the kiddos were down there. Some boxes are water warped. I've come up with the idea that Santa dropped them in snow. I'm a writer, I make stuff up.

10. Illustrator, Kaitlyn McCane, recently had one of her awesome illustrations put on the food network's recipe a day blog. Check it out here and give her a high five.

11. Whoever came up with chocolate chip cookies is a god.

Any weekend plans?

Have a wonderful weekend!

The middle of patience

If you didn't get a chance to check out the entries for the Crazy Holiday Blogfest, please go here. A big Thank You to all of you who participated, and all of you who commented. The entries were awesome. Great job everyone!!

So, I'm in the middle of WiP #1 revisions. It's not that I'm stuck, just wanting to move on. I think because I basically re-wrote the whole story so I'm ready to finish it. I've thought about putting it on the shelf, but that sounds criminal. It's like I'm sending it to jail because it's being bad. The MCs do talk to me, quite often, but WiP#3 is tempting me with chocolate. Lots of battles here. Plus, it's testing my patience.

I'm trying not to rush revisions though, considering this is my first finished story. I'm just nudging them a little. I'm learning there are no shortcuts, no ways to make it painless, no way to hurry my creative process, only practice and time. I will admit, I'm slow at a lot of things, but I tend to try and rush them. This makes things careless and messy, not to mention life just goes by in flash as it is, so why push it. Only time will tell, and like I said, practice and time.

In the meantime, I continue to listen to my inspiration music, eyeing every detail, listening for each word as it's spoken (in my head), twisting and wracking my brain on how to make this story the best it can be. So thank you to all the musicians out there. You inspire my whole creative process and without it, life would be boring.

How about you?  Let me know your progress or inspirations.

I will leave you today with lyrics, that's right, lyrics. I read a lot, but I listen to music even more. So, when I quote it's usually from song lyrics. I may start to do this on a daily basis, if it bothers you, well, just let me know. Today, I leave you with this:

Best you've got to be the best

you've got to change the world

and use this chance to be heard

your time is now

From: "Butterflies And Hurricanes" by Muse

And this:
When you think you've tried
Every road, every avenue
Take one more look at what you found old
And in it you'll find something new

From: "One Caress" by Depeche Mode

Have a great day!

Crazy Holiday Blogfest.

So here it is, my first blogfest. Yikes. Please excuse the roughness of my entry. I know I'm not the best with tenses and this is not in revisions yet. Anywho, I will be checking out all the cool entries.

My entry is from my WiP#3, working title: Wrapping Paper. Sorry, I did go over the 250 limit. I know I'm a bad hostess.

The deep rumble of the ocean thundered in my ears, drowning out the music that blasted behind me. Cool sand squished between my toes as I stepped off the boardwalk. I found a spot to sit, and inhaled the salt infested air, invigorating my lungs. The stares and whispers of the others, especially Lacey, made me leave the party. So far, Auntie Claire didn’t notice. Was I really that different? Would I ever fit in?


“Hey,” a soft male voice whispered. “Can I?” Will stood there in his baggy plaid shorts and navy blue T-shirt, pointing to the empty spot next to me.


A slight tingle ran up my spine. “Yeah, sure.” Not having a lot of contact with teenage boys, left me with waves of odd sensations in my stomach.

Will sat, propping his elbows on his knees. “Not into parties?” The light breeze sent ripples across his shirt. He dangled the neck of his beer bottle between his fingers.

“I…feel a little out of place.” I wrapped the front of my sweater around me, directing my attention towards the water. The moonlight swam on the waves, as each ripple of water slithered towards the beach.

He looked over his shoulder. “Claire knows how to take advantage of a holiday…well…she finds any excuse to throw a party.”

“She sure does. Christmas on the Fourth of July? That takes some planning.” I brought my knees to my chest.

Will smiled, and shook his head. “Not into Santa hats?”
I heard my Aunt’s flirtatious giggle and hugged my knees even tighter. She knew how to be social. I should learn from her, but it wasn’t me.


“I just don’t know that many people.”

“You’ll get to know them. We all have one year left.” He elbowed my arm. “And I’ll protect you from Lacey and her piranhas.”

“She’s seems…” I bit my lip.

“Like a b****?”

“Yeah.” I swirled my fingers in the sand, trying to calm the nerves that rose in my chest.

“But my brother likes her so I’ve got to put up with her.” Will kept his eyes on me.

“What?”

“Nothing.” He sipped his beer, it made a popping sound as it left his lips. “I’m sorry did you want some?”

“No thanks.” I squinted.

“So you don’t drink beer, either? Boy, you must think I’m…”

“Oh, god no. I just never… really… drank it before.” Even though the air held a slight chill, a layer of dew formed on my skin from the embarrassing heat rising in my body.

“Ever?” He raised his eyebrows.

“Never?” My mouth went dry. “God, you must think I’m a...”

“No. you’re just way different than your aunt.”

“What do mean?”

“I just thought you would be more like her. Parties, super social, and doesn’t care if…we drink underage.” His smile curled up his cheek.

“I should go.” I stood up, brushing the excess sand off my back pockets. Me and this conversation were sinking deep into the depths of the raging sea.

“Livie. Wait. Let me start over. I …”

I turned away from him. “It’s okay. I get this a lot. Moving here was a mistake, I should’ve gone to Wisconsin with my cousin.”

“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m trying to... Please, sit, the fireworks are about to start.” I jumped as a loud pop burst in the sky. A red glow cast on the side of his face and highlighted the tips of his hair. “See.” He pointed to the sky. “You’re not going leave me here to watch this by myself, are you?”

I shifted my weight to my back foot, watching his sweet chocolate brown eyes plead with me. He was the only person trying to reach out to me, not like that other girl, Lacey, who just squinted and stared. I licked my lips, swallowed every nerve, and sat back down next to him.

*Nerves twisting in my stomach* Sweat is forming under my arms. I think I will go eat some chocolate. Can't wait to read the others. Have a wonderful day!

Writing The Next Line Recap

Yeah. I'm behind. I should've posted this a couple of weeks ago. I'm not even going to give you an excuse.
Great job, as always. I did do this Writing the Next Line a little different. I took the ending from the last session and let you guys continue the story (instead of me coming up with something new).
So without further babbling. Here is the recap.

Authors: Alesa Warcan, SA Larsen, Anne Gallagher, Matthew Rush, Talli Roland, The Golden Eagle, Christine H, and MS Hatch.

Behind me I heard a whuff of breath and I spun around, but there was nothing. The scratching started again, this time to my right. I suppressed the urge to look when something grabbed me and covered my mouth. The hand reeked of petrol and smoke, and I chocked as I tried to breathe. I felt hot breath curl its way around my ear and leave it cold in the frosty air. i tried to scream, but only muffled sounds came from my deep in my throat. I gathered all my strength and with all my might, I broke the person's hold around me. I turned sharply to see who this was.

"Oh my God!" I shouted. "I thought you were dead!"

"Jesus Abby, chill for a minute," he said "I'm not trying to hurt you."

Hurting me was no longer my concern, why I was seeing & talking to my dead boyfriend was.

"I'll explain in a minute," he said, his voice low and tight with panic, "but first we need to get out of here."

And so we logged out of the game and I called Mark. He had told me his avatar had been permanently killed. He had certainly better have a good explanation for this! I had been counting on him to help me get through the quest of remembrance at Aldebran.

His hand laced around mine, that safety I'd always felt with him returning. We scurried around downed tree boughs and ducked under drooping limbs. That is until my boy boot snagged a lazy piece of brush and I fell...into nothingness.

I didn't have time to scream, the blackness enveloped my senses and then I landed with a thump on my bum. My hands caressed feathers.

Where was I? I felt like Alice in Wonderland.


It turned out I had landed in the nest of a Giant Roc, which was just now waking, stirred by my impact.


The Roc stared at me, yellow eyes unblinking. I backed away as quietly as I could.
I backed up against the side of the nest, and grabbed a rock as defense; the Roc let out a screech that put my hair on end and I shivered from its malevolence.

I realized that it was screeching because the rock I had grabbed was actually an egg, and it was hatching!
A bedraggled baby roc emerged from the cracked shell and jumped onto my shoulder, wobbling until its sharp little talons dug into my flesh.

Awesome job guys!! Next, Writing the Next Line, December 20th. Mark your calenders.

Don't forget, Monday, December 13th, Crazy Holiday Blogfest. Yes, this Monday. Any genre. I said to try and keep it to 250 words, but if you go over don't fret. I think I may be over that amount. *blushes*

Have a great day!

Fun Facts Friday

Fun Facts Friday. Friday. Already. Holy cow! I'd better get shopping, Christmas is creeping up.This week I did get some writing done. I revised some chapters in WiP#1, and wrote some things for WiP #3. So let me list my week. It may be short.

1. Don't forget  My first blogfest as hostess will be happening right here on Monday, December 13. The Crazy Holiday Blogfest. Now, I have stated 250 words or less. I'm not holding you to that. If you have more, post it, because my post will be longer. Sorry, I didn't realize how many words I pumped out.

2. I will be posting Writing the Next Line Recap on Sunday. Sorry for the delay. A new Writing the Next Line will be posted December 20th.

3. Frankie (Frankie Writes) is holding a contest for Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy Last Sacrifice. Signed. Yes, I want it. I love this series.Winner to be  announced December 17th. Also, check out her 2nd Annual No Kiss blogfest January 2nd.

4. Shannon's Arc giveaway of Desires of the Dead by Kimberly Derting. Yes, I want this one too. Winner to be announced December 22nd.

5. That was a lot of announcements this morning. Please check my sidebar for other news.

6. This week, I had new windows installed in my house. Pretty painless. Thank god. Now I need to clean. **cringes** Don't run in horror. I have company coming tonight.

7. Unless, I'm alone and writing or reading, I don't like being confined to my house. With the whole window thing, I felt like I had to be here. Not to mention, the temperature outside is like living in the freakin' tundra. It's going to be 29 degrees on Tuesday. Yes, the high. Did I mention I hate don't like the cold?

8. Last Friday, we took the kids to our town's Christmas parade. Now, this parade has grown over the years. It was an hour and forty five minutes long. It feels like forever when you are trying to keep warm. The kids did good though. We stayed till the end to see Santa, of course.  This year, there was an American Idol runner up. The guy with dreads who plays the guitar. I don't watch the show, but this was one of the main attractions.

9. Another attraction, Phil and April Margera. I think a lot of people come to see if their son, Bam Margera shows, but I didn't see him. He is a professional skateboarder/local celeb. If you watched the show, Jackass, you would know who he is. I do see him here a lot, and, well, despite his antics, has brought some publicity to the town, which equals more visitors, which equals--you know where I'm going with this.

10. Wow, I actually made it to number 10. My brain is mush so I will go. What are your plans this weekend?

Don't forget Monday, people, right here. It may take me a while to read all the entries, so don't get mad at me if it takes me a couple of days.

Have a great weekend!!

Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

Hello new blogger buddies. I will be visiting your blog soon.

Well, I read it. Yes, I did. In two days. I have kids, people.  Plus, I'm a slow reader. I became a big fan of Becca Fitzpatrick after I read Hush,Hush, so yeah, I had some big expectations. Here is my review.

Title: Crescendo

Author: Becca Fitzpatrick

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Pages: 432 pages

The blurb:

Nora should have know her life was far from perfect. Despite starting a relationship with her guardian angel, Patch (who, title aside, can be described anything but angelic), and surviving an attempt on her life, things are not looking up. Patch is starting to pull away and Nora can't figure out if it's for her best interest or if his interest has shifted to her arch-enemy Marcie Millar. Not to mention that Nora is haunted by images of her father and she becomes obsessed with finding out what really happened to him that night he left for Portland and never came home.

The farther Nora delves into the mystery of her father's death, the more she comes to question if her Nephilim blood line has something to do with it as well as why she seems to be in danger more than the average girl. Since Patch isn't answering her questions and seems to be standing in her way, she has to start finding the answers on her own. Relying too heavily on the fact that she has a guardian angel puts Nora at risk again and again. But can she really count on Patch or is he hiding secrets darker than she can even imagine?

My review:
First, the cover. She has some of the most beautiful/amazing covers. Love this. If I knew nothing about the book, I probably would be inclined to just buy it because of the cover (I'm a interior designer, I like the way things look).

The story: Becca Fitzpatrick did not disappoint. The twists and turns keep me turning the page. Yeah, one of those 'do not put me down books'.  In other words, the pacing is fantastic. The writing is amazing and the story is like a rollercoaster ride that I did not want get off.

I love Nora's best friend, Vee. She is awesome. The dialogue between her and Nora was done well. It flowed so well. I love writing dialogue and love to see it done well. It helps the flow.

Patch, to me, is even more dreamy than in the first. Okay I'm shallow, sorry guys. I did get a little giddy when he showed up on the page ( I think my cheeks turned red). I know I sound ridiculous, but hey I love YA, we girls can get this way.

Now, I'm not one to point out too many bad things (it's the whole Karma thing, it will come back at me). There were a couple of times when the 'talking to the reader' sort of slowed me down, but that could be me. I'm having issues with this. Also in some spots, I wanted to slap Nora, but I don't want to say too much. I don't like to reveal any spoilers. These little measly points did not sway me from this most excellent book. They were simply minor, and like I said, my opinion.

The end: I don't even want to go there. Brilliant, I think. I actually wanted to throw the book--I would never do this, but I wanted to. It wasn't because it was bad, oh no, because it left me-- Ha! You thought I would reveal. No spoilers remember. Let's just say, I can't wait for Tempest (the last book), which Ms. Fitzpatrick better hurry up and write (I think it's due out Fall 2011, arrgh). No pressure.

Summing up: I loved this. No book can be perfect, can it? It was fast, comfortable (by this I mean the characters were comfortable to me), hot, edge of your seat, wild ride of pleasure.

Recommendation: Oh yeah, go get it now.

If you read this, what are your thoughts?

I will post the Recap of Writing the Next Line soon. Sorry for the delay. I will be posting a new Writing the Next Line on December 20th. So mark your calenders. This month is going a little too fast for me.
Don't forget Monday, Crazy holiday blogfest (December 13th).
Have a great day!

News flash

Just a quick news flash --go here (Check out the interview by SA Larsen, The Writer's Alley) to check out the amazing contest for Lisa and Laura's new book, The Liar Society. Winner to be announced December 20th. You know they rock, and if you don't, get your butt over to their blog or one of the many pages they have (they are everywhere) . There is also a new website for the book where you can go and vote for which cover you would like to see on the bookshelves.

They are sweet.

In other news, I received this lovely award from Michelle Gregory.

Kristie Cook is starting her Purpose Virtual Release Party with a blog award. She says, "It's the brand-spanking-new 'Living My Purpose Blog Award,' because I believe we are all living our purposes in one way or another."

To accept the award, all you have to do is:
Right-click the picture to save and post on your blog.
Share one way you are living your purpose.
Share three other things about yourself.
Give the award to at least three other people, including links so we can check out their blogs.

This is a new one for me. So sweet.

One way I am living my purpose. hmmm. That's a toughy. I'm not like a scientist curing cancer or anything. I guess my purpose is to help others. I'm not expert at writing, but I love reaching out to others when they need a shoulder or a celebration. I love sharing stories of encouragement. Whew! That was a tough question. I probably sound a little silly or lame.

Three things about myself:

1. I still can't believe that I'm writing openly. I used to hide it, and was so scared when someone read it. Well, I'm still scared, but I'm more comfortable with the fact that it is what I love to do, and I'm not afraid to tell anyone.

2. I'm scared of failure. I'm sure everyone is, but I'm afraid I'll let my kids, hubs and myself down.

3. I can't be without music. It's always playing somewhere near me.

So the rules say to choose three people for the award. I, of course, would love to chose everyone, but the post would be super long. Here are a few folks to check out.

Kelly Lyman (Kelly's Compositions)

Crystal Cook (write because you must)

SA Larsen (Writer's Alley)

So for the rest of you, go up there and take the award because you all deserve it.

Have a great day!

Are they speaking to you?

This post is more about looking to you guys for your advice,opinion or both. I'm sort of confused about a certain topic. You know, when your reading a book and a character seems to ask you a question. When they seem to be talking to you. I've been told this is 'talking to the reader'.

I have to admit my first so-called draft had a lot of this, along with a ton of backstory. Seriously, my MC was having a one on one conversation with the reader. As I have grown (I admit, just a little), my brain is starting to recognize this. Many of my CPs have told me to take it out, which I get. Since I've been reading a lot more, it's been easier to pick it up in other critiques that I've done.

Here is where I get confused, and this may be a matter of opinion. It may be that if it fits the story, then it's allowed.  I dunno, but lately in a few popular novels, I've seen it and seen it a lot. Is this something that is okay in publishing? In my opinion, it does slow the story down a lot. In fact, I'm beginning to cut as much out of my MS as possible. Like I said, maybe it's just me, but the less of this, the better. For me.

So, I want to know from you.
What is your opinion on this?

Do you like it?

And when is it best to use it?

The weekend was busy, but Friday, I wrote some new stuff for WiP#3 and revised a chapter for WiP#1 (yeah, I'm excited). I plan to continue revising, plus work on my piece for my blogfest. See over there, on my sidebar. It's on Monday, so spread the word.

How was your weekend?

Any goals?

I'm full of questions today. Have a great day!

Fun Facts Friday

I hope you all had a great week. Things were up and down for me, but not boring, that's for sure.

1. I'm having a hard time getting fully into the holiday spirit. I don't know why. I'm usually gushing while I listen to "Do they know it's Christmas?" and I get a warm, fuzzy, but this year it's weird. Maybe because Christmas trees have been up in the stores since September. Who knows? I'm not scrooge, though.

2. One of my cats is a tuxedo cat. Basically, a mix breed that is black and white. I googled it, and it seems my little monster is 200% smarter than the average cat, and could drive a car in an emergency. No lie. Google it. The other characteristics were dead on.

3. I want to find the wizard behind the green curtain that controls my kids. Seriously dude, shut them off at four in the afternoon. Do not push the super turbo button that makes them scream and run out of control. It's like they ate six Pixie Sticks (candy that's basically flavored sugar in a straw), and slurped down a pot of caffeinated coffee. I swear one of their heads started spinning.

4. One of the treats in this house is McDonald's. I know super bad for you, but great for a quick lunch. I don't get much, small fries and a wrap, but I look forward to those fries and when the batch is not good--it's such a disappointment.

5. I sometimes think some kids toys are a little crazy. For example, I saw a commercial for a stuffed pig that lives in a tea cup. Yeah, I was speechless, too. I have to hand it to imagination, though.

6. Once December 1st hits, I think the term crazy driver applies. Yesterday, I ran to the store (not literally, I was driving). Four cars ran a red light, and I was cut off twice. Yes, I do live in the northeast, and some say we are the hurried type, but this is beyond that. Can Christmas give you the crazies?

7. Met up with a CP, and got some brainstorming done (thanks Kelly). I have a whole bunch of stuff to think about. I'm ready to take it on. :) I will give it a few days to process (really, who am I kidding. The first chance I get, I'm working on it).

8. After I came back from our meeting, WiP#3 presented itself in HD quality, in my visions. I may have to do some quick scenes today. Wait, when does that happen (alone time for me)?

Yeah, I would love to be doing this. Artwork by Kaitlyn McCane

9. I remember when I was young I would receive a letter in the mail from Santa. Nowadays, kids can receive a video e-mail message tailored to your child. I did this with my kids, and, well, mouths dropped. If you are a parent, check out this site on how to get Santa's message to your kiddo.

10. I will have a book review next week. Yes, a certain guy named Patch is involved. *sigh*

How was your week?

Any weekend plans?

Have a great weekend!

Three things Thursday

Good morning. I'm eating breakfast (which my table doesn't look as cute as it does in the picture) while typing this. If you like chocolate Cheerios, I'll pour you a bowl. Sorry, I don't have coffee on, but I'll make you a cup if you like. Take a seat and relax.   

I don't normally post on Thursdays, but today I felt like it. Amie McCracken (i AM alive) hosts three things Thursdays. Yes,every Thursday, and it's really cool. She gives a topic and you post three things about it. So this week the topic is Family.

Three things about my family:

1. I love them dearly. They are home, even though there's a lot of craziness and usually some sort of drama.

2. They know how to lift me up when I'm down. Most of the time, I get the best support from them, even though they don't fully don't understand me.
3. The best memories I have are when I'm with my family.

I'm sort of short with words today. Sorry. I'm still waking up and trying to figure out a time to revise because my MCs are yelling at me.

How is your day going?

Have a great day!!

Talli Roland's Blogsplash

If you don't know this sweet gal, get on over to her blog. She is taking over Amazon today. See the details below.

Help Talli Roland's debut novel THE HATING GAME hit the Kindle bestseller list at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk by spreading the word today. Even a few sales in a short period of time on Amazon helps push the book up the rankings, making it more visible to other reader.

Amazon.co.uk: http://amzn.to/hNBkJk

Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/hX2ieD

No Kindle? Download a free app at Amazon for Mac, iPhone, PC, Android and more.
Coming soon in paperback. Keep up with the latest at http://www.talliroland.com/.

About THE HATING GAME:
When man-eater Mattie Johns agrees to star on a dating game show to save her ailing recruitment business, she's confident she'll sail through to the end without letting down the perma-guard she's perfected from years of her love 'em and leave 'em dating strategy. After all, what can go wrong with dating a few losers and hanging out long enough to pick up a juicy £2000,000 prize? Plenty, Mattie discovers, when it's revealed that the contestants are four of her very unhappy exes. Can Mattie confront her past to get the prize money she so desperately needs, or will her exes finally wreak their long-awaited revenge? And what about the ambitious TV producer whose career depends on stopping her from making it to the end?

Sounds good, right? I can't wait to read it. :)

So go and check it out.

Have a great day!