Tuesday Truth: I Love Granny Nighties
That might be TMI. 
And maybe they look a little dorky and old-fashioned. But for lounging around my apartment on a chilly evening, a thick, long flannel nightgown is the perfect thing for me. I sit in my recliner, tuck my crossed legs under the nightie, put my laptop across my lap and type away.
Come on, doesn’t this look comfy?
These nightgowns can be found at www.vermontcountrystore.com
Tuesday Truth: The Pine tree ate my homework!
Well … Today is the first day of school for Minnesota kids and other kids all over America. This past weekend I went up to Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba Canada. Had a fantastic time with a couple hundred other SCA peeps. I brought my lap top and planned to write a significant amount.
Saturday was a bust writing-wise. But on Sunday morning I woke before most people, showered, dressed, wrapped my cloak around me and carried my laptop out to the table and benches under the pine trees next to the great hall. It was a beautiful morning, cool but not cold, with the sun shining brightly and the murmur of the trees whispering as they swayed in the breeze. I knew which scene I was going to write, and I was looking forward to it. I opened the laptop, got set up, write a line, and then decided I needed a cup of tea. I got it and hurried back to the Work in Progress. As I began typing I noticed my hands felt sticky, Yuck. Did I get pancake syrup on me in the kitchen? I tried wiping it off. No luck. Now my hand, my mouse, the inside of my lower arm and the edge of my keyboard were sticky. GRRRRR!!!!
Then I saw the source. A nice fat drop of pine resin had landed on my mouse and I had smeared it all over. Did you know that pine resin is quite hard to get rid of? Water doesn’t do it. Dish soap and water don’t do it. Paper towels like to stick to it. Strenuous attempts to clean it off failed. I finally packed up the computer and put it away.
So I did not get much writing done this weekend. My only excuse is that the Pine Tree Ate It.
Tuesday Truth: I’m Not Cleaning For a Month!
Both at the day job and with my writing, I am on overtime. I am bound and determined to finish the rough draft of Eddie’s Prize by September 4. I’m not a fast writer. I can’t tell you how much I envy those authors who can write an excellent book in 10 weeks. I can point at all kinds of things in my life that steal my writing time (*cough* Facebook. *cough* knitting) but we all need our hobbies to keep us sane, right? And of course, I work a full-time job for Medicare where we’re all on overtime from today through October 5.
I can do it. I can gt this book written. I just need to watch my time, not volunteer for other things, and concentrate on writing when I get home from work. It also gives me an excuse to not clean for a month. 😀
Tuesday Truth: blog hop ahead!
Hey, everyone, summer’s coming to a close. For parents, that might mean that money is tight after buying school clothes and supplies. Can’t afford new reading material? Don’t fret. Go on the Love’s A Beach Blog Hop this weekend. There will be lots and lots of cool prizes to win like books! And out grand prize of a Nook Glo-Light!
And be like my mom. Put the flag out on the first day of school. With 8 of us, mom always said the first day of school ought to be a national holiday. 🙂
Tuesday Teaser: A Tidbit From Sky & Rose’s Story
Right now, this is in Eddie’s Prize, but my editor may have me delete it since it really isn’t about Lisa or Eddie. So I thought you might like to read it. This takes place during the first night that Rose spends at the den after Sky has rescued her from Two Bears. I hope you enjoy it!
Lisa slept quite well in one of the double beds in the room Carla had ordered cleared out for Rose to live in. She was disoriented when she woken by soft sobs from the other bed. She lay in the dark, comfortably warm under the stack of quilts and blankets that Carla had heaped on the beds for she and Rose, debating whether Rose would welcome comfort or be embarrassed by it. The choice was taken out of her hands when the door opened quietly and someone came in on silent feet. Lisa strained to see who it was, wondering if whichever of the men who’d had this room before had forgotten something when he’d moved out. It was too dark to see, but a rustle came from Rose’s bed.
“Rose,” whispered Sky. “Are you alright? Don’t cry, please.”
Lisa froze, wondering if she should say something or pretend to be a sleep.
“Sky, you’re not supposed to be in here,” came Rose’s hiss.
“I heard you crying.”
“How could you hear me crying? I’m not being that loud!”
“Sh, Rose, don’t wake anybody up. I just wanted to be sure you were alright.”
Lisa quickly closed her eyes and tried to breathe slowly as if she were still asleep.
“I’m fine.”
That disagreeable tone didn’t put Sky off. “Could I hold you for a little while?” he pleaded. “Just two minutes and I’ll leave you alone, I promise.”
Rose muttered something that Lisa couldn’t catch, but she didn’t hear Sky leave. There was a faint creak from the bed and then silence. Lisa knew she shouldn’t be eavesdropping, but what else could she do? Of course, she probably didn’t need to strain so hard to try to hear what might be going on.
“I think it’s been more than two minutes,” Rose hissed.
“Okay.” There was soft sound of a kiss, and the meaty thud of a fist punching skin and muscle. “Ow, you didn’t need to do that.”
“Get out, Sky!”
A moment later Lisa heard the door open and close. Out of the dark, Rose’s voice was a hissed whisper. “Ms. Anton, are you awake?”
Lisa sighed and shifted on the feather mattress. “Mrs. Madison,” she corrected. “Oh, just call me Lisa. And yes, I did hear. Sorry for listening in.”
“That’s okay.” Humor touched the teenager’s voice. “I don’t think you had much choice. You don’t need to mention this to Mrs. Wolfe, do you? Sky did save me this morning. I don‘t want to get him in trouble.”
“I won’t say a word,” Lisa promised.
As she settled herself back down to sleep, she wondered what would come of Sky and Rose.
Tuesday Teaser: Eddie’s Prize again
A teeny snippet from the work in progress. Lisa and Eddie in bed, near the end of their honeymoon.
Through teeth clenched with effort, Eddie said, “We’re done talking about this. Your past is in the past. Right now, from this point, we’re starting fresh. Okay? You don’t talk to men any more than you have to, and I’ll control the beast. The jealousy, I mean.”
“Yes, but—“
To shut her up before the beast tore away from his control, Eddie kissed her almost violently. At last, the beast stopped fighting him and Eddie let himself sink into the warmth of Lisa’s mouth. He’d thought he was too tired to make love again tonight, but he was wrong.
Tuesday Truth: I love Baen Books!
Do you ever feel like the big publishing houses care a lot more about dollars than their customers? It’s sort of frustrating when an ebook costs more than the paper copy! That is NOT to say that I think all ebooks should be $0.99. Publishers (even self-publishing authors) still have to pay the art department, the editors and, of course, the author. Publishers deserve to make a profit. If they don’t, they’ll close shop and then where will we get our books?
One publisher that I think does it right is Baen books. If you enjoy fantasy and science fiction but don’t know about Baen’s ebooks, you’re missing out. What does Baen offer? Here are three reasons I love Baen:
- They have a FREE library. Yep, hundreds of their bestselling authors are absolutely free in the format of your choice. I’m not talking about duds that no one has ever heard of. They have Mercedes Lackey, Andre Norton, Lois Bujold McMasters, Jacqueline Carey, David Weber, etc. etc. I give them huge kudos for offering great books for free.
- They offer eARC (advanced readers copies) months before the book is actually out. You pay for it. ARCs run about $15.00. But sometimes, when you’re jonesing for the next book in a series, $15 is a cheap price to pay.
- They sell ebooks that are in hardcover in books stores for $6.00. That’s right, that great new book that costs $24.99 in hardcover in the store (and $12.99-$14.99 in e-format at digital sellers) cost only $6.00 when you buy it from Baen.
How can you go wrong? Head over to Baen. Whenever possible I give them my business as a way to say “Thank You” for remembering that their customers are readers who love stories, not just wallets to squeeze.
Tuesday Teaser-Eddie’s Prize
It’s time a for a teaser from my Work in Progress, Eddie’s Prize. Lisa, an international fashion model back home, is frightened, and wants Eddie to win her. Here are a couple paragraphs from just before the Bride Fights starts.
Lisa looked quickly at the sea of men on the theater floor and found Eddie by his dark gold hair and pale skin. He was almost directly below her, standing a yard away from the stage. For a one moment she forgot everything else while she ran slow, thorough eyes over him. Eddie was a god. A perfect idol fashioned of gold and ivory. He was shirtless and his lean chest and narrow waist were pale amid all the dark-skinned men. Lisa frowned. His pecs and abs were well-defined, but he looked so slender, almost skinny, compared to the other men he stood with. If those other men, so burly and thick, were who he would be fighting, he wouldn’t have a chance.
Ray seemed to read her concern. He patted her on the head like a child, although she was an inch taller than he was. “He might look a bit small, but he’s fast and a helluva lot stronger than he looks. He’ll mop the floor with the rest of them fighters. Just wait. I’ll be calling you daughter before night.”
Ugh, that was the bad part of Eddie winning. But still, Eddie was the best choice. Some of these other men eying her and puffing out their chests were handsome enough to be models – or they would be if they did something with their hair and teeth—but Eddie was the only one she wanted.
Tuesday Truth
The Truth of the Day is:
I need a nap. Yes, it is suppertime now, and I plan to write for at least 3 hours tonight, but that doesn’t mean I don’t need a nap. *yawn* I think I slept well enough last night, so I don’t know why I’m yawning and drooping.
Maybe it’s the heat? It’s not in the 90s any more, not quite. But the high hasn’t been lower than 86 for about three weeks. The average high for this time of the year is 83, so it’s only five or six degrees hotter. I don’t like hot weather. How about a few weeks of five or six degrees cooler than average, huh?
Tuesday Truth-Writing is Work
Do you ever think: Wow, I wish I could write book, but … And then list the reasons why you couldn’t, like “I don’t have the time” or “my computer is crappy” or “I don’t have the patience” or “I start and then it fizzles”.
Well, published authors deal with all that too. We all have days where the ideas just aren’t coming. Or maybe I should speak just for myself. I have struggled with writing Eddie’s Prize. I’ve had a lot going on in my life the last year or so. My mom’s been sick, my widowed sister moved back into my mom’s house with her daughter, I’ve had a lot of illness myself. Last summer the department I’d worked in for years was downsized and I was sent to another team. It hasn’t been a good experience for me. In fact, I hate my day job, but I can’t live without the paycheck. I think that stress has affected my love for writing.
However, the good news is my critique group has told me that they think the writing I have done is very good. In fact, one gal said she thought Eddie’s Prize was my best writing yet.
So, I’m back on the horse, trying hard to get this story finished.
