BEHIND THE EIGHT BALL

9:30 my time and only a couple of sentences on story. :( Did finish and post Timeless Fire. Did take care of weblogs. Did sell eighty dollars more in books today. Yeah. But need to work on submission piece. My killer is getting restless without me to calm him down. No telling what'll he do next. LOL Demetri and Gail are going to investigate a case which may be connected in Indiana, while Mallory and Theo are investigating another murder at Lake Palestine. Are they connected? The killer is feeling cornered. Making mistakes. I need to get back to see what he does after this. Onward and Upward.

WATER SUNSET 

Lake in Yosemite 

Made It!

Made my goal again today. Wrote the first thousand this morning. Then, it was time to do my work for the paper. I wrote three articles and worked on the fourth. I had started back to work on Pocket, when Randy came in from golf and invited me out for Mexican Food. Did I refuse? Nearly broke my neck getting to the door. Hahaha! Of course this was Mystery Monday, but PBS ran the convention so my night was shorter than usual. Book is coming along well. Now at 40,000. This is my ninteenth day of working on it. I'll have it finished and edited by the fifteenth. I have a couple of speaking engagements coming up during the last few days, but I should be almost done by then. The killer is getting a little cocky now, but not slowing down. Mallory will have to work hard to catch this one. Onward and Upward.

Summer flowers 

Sunday and closing.

I have written over 4,000 wds today and over 3,000 yesterday. So, everything is going well. The plotting cards are working out great--although I must confess to adding in extra characters quite frequently. Sunday night are for British mysteries as are Mondays. Weston received a medal Saturday for the Summer Reading Program. He was so proud. Has a wonderful imagination. I would love for him to become a writer, but he is set on being a policeman and refuses to budge. Randy plays golf tomorrow so I'll have the entire day to write. Hope to get ahead again. Wrote today on Pocket Full of Die and Timeless Fire. Love writing the two novels at once. Well, three counting Blonde Logic. Love writing that one too. Onward and Upward.

Plotting!

Last night was like pulling teeth to get my word count. I was at the end of my scene layout and not sure where to go. So I have spent the morning plotting out scenes. When I got to 30 new ones, I stopped (becoming a little overwhelmed with the wealth of material I had to draw from) Discarding my usual method, I took a note from my writer friend, Zette, put them on notecards and arranged them in the order I wanted to write them. It is so nice! I dropped her a note thanking her for being such a good example. :D The writing goes so much faster when you know where you're going. :) I did 3500 plus hand writing today. A good day for writing. The story is really moving now. Relationships are developing. My killer is getting very confident and a little careless. The police are working overtime to catch him. Onward and Upward.

Weston enjoyed the B-Day party! 

I want some cake! 

Wed and Out

I got to keep little Duncan this morning. He is at such a sweet age. Climbs on everything. Explores everything. (Just like I did--and do) LOL Well, Opie2, the Opossum is back outdoors. We found him last night all snuggled up in the rag drawer. He was so comfy. His little nose darting back and forth sniffing everything. We unched him up in the dip net and gently laid him on the ground. He is happy. I left food for him. Word count is past 2,ooo. Need to make 3,000 tonight. Think I'll visit with the killer a while. He's always up to something interesting. LOL I am almost half-way done. The plot is developing nicely with threads running everywhere. Be nice to get them all tied up into nice, neat bows. :D Onward and Upward.

Roses 

Past 2 --Going down the home stretch

My two and a half mile walk this morning almost made me a cripple. :D I wore a pair of new shoes and half way through I could stand it no longer. I took the shoes off and walked barefoot!!! That was bad, but better than those awful shoes. :( The writing is going well. Past two thousand and on my way to three thousand. If I can keep this up, the submission will be finished in plenty of time. Yeah!!! I have posted my story on the story blog and am going to add the history. Then back to the writing. Onward and Upward! Happy Birthday to Jade!

Golf Course Water Trap 

Nearing the Mark

I'm nearing the 3,000 mark which was my goal for the night. Actually, I've crossed if I count the newspaper writing I did. But I want to have 3,000 done on Pocket Full of Die. Another twist is coming up. (Like the whole novel isn't full of them already) :D Did my interview for the newspaper today and mailed off my new chapter of Blonde Logic. The paper prints a chapter every Friday. I'm ahead on that, but won't be for much longer. Same thing with Love's Timeless Fire. Just one more posting and I am caught up. Back to the old keyboard! LOL But I love it. Writing that one is a lot of fun! Well, my killer is getting lonely without me. Better get him finished and put to bed. Onward and Upward.

Stained Glass2 

Toward 4,000.

Tonight I am very near the 3,000 wd count and going toward 4,000. I have 24 days left to finish the book. The plot if falling together very well with loose threads everywhere. Now to get to the 60,000 wds length. I am editing as I go and will do a final edit at the end. Life has been busy and tomorrow is Deadline Monday--my day to get my stories in to the paper. Well here's back to work. The rain has been nice to work by. We've had three days of storms. Not bad enought to cut the electricity!!! That would be bad. :D Well, Onward and Upward! I hit the 4,000 wds mark right at 12:00!!! Finally! If I could do that every day, everything would be great! Added several new scenes I am pleased with and a new twist. Time to rest. Onward and Upward.

Dog and Fawn 

You won't believe this!

Last night about 12:00, I opened the back door to let the cat inside for the evening. The second I opened the door, she ran inside along with one of the year-old kittens. Or so I thought. When I took a closer look, I saw that what had rushed into my house was a baby opossum. Can you believe that??? It ran under the desk and hid. My hubby was already asleep so I decided to wait until morning to tell him. He couldn't believe it either. They only come out at night. So, we're going to try tonight. I am almost at 3,000 wds for today. I have worked on Pocket during the day and Timeless Fire to take a break. I want to get a lot done today, because I have interviews to do for the newpaper tomorrow. The novel is going well. I am pleased, especially with the killer's POV. Onward and Upward! It is 10:00 and I have reached the 3,000 wd count. I am going to try to get ahead 1,000 more for tomorrow!!!

Stained Glass 

Headway

Today is a red-letter day. I have added over 6,000 wds to POCKET FULL OF DIE. Yeah! That makes up for a couple of re-editing days! I have a go-ahead on the submission and my plot is laid out. A few more days like this and I will easily make my goal. Today Duncan is one year old. We had a birthday party over my daughter's house. We will have his big party on Saturday. You should have seen him eating the chocolate cake. I took some pics. If they came out, I'll post one. Onward and Upward!

Lakefront 

Working through the Story

Telling a story depends on many different factors. The story itself, the audience, and of course, the ability of the storyteller. One can re-write the same story in many different ways, highlighting different events, focusing on different characters, or using a different POV. That's what I am doing now. I started a novel--for a general mystery audience and attracted the interest of an publisher. Then, I re-focused the story with more of a specialized noir audience in mind. The style underwent a slight change as well as the attitudes of the protagonists. The story became, at once, more realistic and more serious. I am have 30 days to complete the story and about 50,000 wds left to go. Today I worked on more editing. Tonight, I will add to the basic story. Onward and upward! :D

Beginning to Take Shape

Pocket Full of Die is beginning to take shape. The words are flowing and the plot is developing. I finished my 3,000 plus words today in addition to my Monday deadline of articles. I sent three into the paper along with the new chapter of Blonde Logic. Today was the deadline for the second tax extension. More paperwork and hassle. :D The preparer left out part of my work and will have to do it over again, meaning another extension. :) More fun. School started today! (and the beginning of a new exercise committment. LOL) Hope to get more writing done before bed. Onward and Upward!

Wedding Cake 

One step forward--Two steps back

Well this is the first day of my writing frenzy---not too much writing, but a lot of frenzy. :D First, I got up at 7:30 and wrote for a couple of hours. Decided it was good. Went for a couple of errands and when I came back--the writing had disappeared. Without A Trace. Had to re-write the entire scene. Have had to re-write a couple of other scenes, but publishing rep says they are MUC H improved. So, I guess that's not too bad. Going to write some more tonight before I turn in. And try to save it this time. LOL Onward and Upward!

Snowball Trees! 

Flowering Plum Tree 

New Goals

New adventures and new goals are always exciting. Stirs the blood! Well, I have a new goal to share. A British Publishing editor read a couple of my stories and has asked me to submit one of my unpublished books. Yeah!!! Except for the fact that it is largely unwritten also. I told him I could have it to him by Sept 15th--so that is my new goal. I lack about 50 to 60,000 wds having it finished. It is doable, but will require focus and nose to the grindstone for the next month. I love challenges! Onward and Upward!

Newborn Kittens 

Monday Mysteries

I just woke up from a nap. Hot days are good for that. Almost time for my British Mysteries to begin. :) There is usually a one hour mystery, followed by a two-hour mystery, and then another one-hour. or I switch the channel and get another 2 hour. Sundays are the same way--my favorite nights. And on Sunday afternoons they run two British mystery movies back to back. Ah, heaven!!! I can hardly wait! I have been working on a submission today--bio stuff. This publisher wants a long bio--more than I want to take the time to write. LOL And those story summaries. Ugh! Oh, well. Part of the process. Will get back to work.

Rocky Shore 

Plans Interrupted

Had a wonderful lunch with my mom and daughter yesterday. So enjoyable being with them both. :D Last night, I was putting out fires on one of the boards I write on. Now, its back to work. Yeah!!! We ordered pizza tonight and chilled. Nice for a change. I straightened my office and made a birthing cubby hole for my cat who is ready to bingo any minute. LOL I'll definitely post a pic when they arrive. :) Still working on submission and final publisher edit for short story, "Cold Fire". A bit "noir", for some tastes, but still fun in its own dark way. *wink* Tomorrow is British Detective Mysteries on bio channel. Don't forget. Morning into afternoon and then evening. Watched part of the Starskey and Hutch pilot this morning. Hope to catch the rest of it later. :) How much fun can one girl take??? Onward and Upward!

FLAME BUSHES--Nanaimo  

Formatting

Well, the last part should be easy, right????? I wrote the novel, I edited the novel, I corrected the novel, I did a final proof, and now I have the format instructions from the publisher. Should be a piece of cake, right? Wrong!!! I am working on a new edition of Word--#10. It is wonderful, but I haven't quite figured and every time I try to change something, it changes something else. Ohhhhhhhh!!! Buggers! If anyone can tell me how to get an original header on the left side of every page, please feel free. LOL The publisher is expecting the manuscript so I have to figure it out soon. :D Wish me luck! Onward and upward.

Garden in Ontario 

Submission read

Today is going very well. I got up at 5:30 this morning and re-read and edited my lastest submission project (a chore I had been setting aside in favor or more visible accomplishments) :D I had an idea for a new book, but when I tried to put them down, they fizzled. Now, I think I would do better to include them in my current book so I'm going in that direction. Kept the boys last night. Weston starts school soon and I want to get in as many nights as possible. He play Riven on the computer while I wrote on the other one. LOL He will be in the 2nd grade this year. Duncan toddled around and got into things, but soon he was tired and went to sleep for the night. I'm now going to start my word count. :D Hope to finish by midnight. :D

More grapes 

Hot weather!

What happened to our little spot of coolness a couple of days ago? It even rained, remember? Well, you sure couldn't tell it today. :D Today was a shopping day - always a joy! But when you have a gift certificate to use, it makes it better! Much!!! I have been turning a new story around in my mind, but have too much to do before I go to paper. :( The computers have all been cured and are working great. That sure is a relief. :D I am going to be writing late tonight to get in my word count. :) (But I know a few more writers and their muses who'll be up as well) LOL Tonight, I'm probably going to concentrate on either Blonde Logic or more on Timeless Fire. I'd like to get back to Stargate but I have several in front of it. Well back to work.

Wine Fields 

What a day!!!

Mondays are always very busy days for me, but this Monday was unusually stressful! :D I was doing my morning writing, when I wrote a word that didn't quite look right, but that the spell-check didn't mark as wrong. I highlighted and tried it again. Then, the computer told me that my spell check and grammar drivers were nowhere to be found. Whaaaaaaaaa!!! I can't live without those two little gadgets. :D I tried everything, (even re-installing Word) then I called my computer guy and he said to check for viruses and gave me the addy. I spent over an hour downloading the checker and then another for it to check. Yes, I did have a virus - Mdoom (I think that was the name.) Another couple of hours to fix and rescan to check--and there went my day. LOL The good news is that everything is working again, my computer is clean, and working great!!! Now on the the writing. This is deadline Monday and I have many miles to go before I sleep. :D Onward and Upward!

Kiepersol Winery 

Kiepersol Winery

Yesterday, my daughter called and told me of a Harvest Fest very close to my house. She said it was being held at the local winery (which we were unfamiliar with). We went and had a lot of fun. First we had a tour of the winery and the vineyards. Then, my daughter and grandson got into a large tub and stomped grapes. My grandson loved that. (They have a machine that does that for the wine they bottle) Then we tasted their different wines - nine different selections. There was a live band and a grape picking contest. All in all a fun day. Then, last night my brother was in from out of town with his brand new recipe for barbarque sauce which he had concocted himself. It was to die for. Everyone said it was the best they'd every tasted. He was giving a B-Day party for one of his best friends and brought smoked brisket, sausage links, and chicken. The sauce made the meal, thought. Sweet and tangy, with just enough heat. Wonderful!!! Before, between, and after, I worked on my writing. I got my minimum completed, but missed by goal by a few. Too much living. LOL I told my brother I had fallen behind in my walking but that my writing count had improved. He said, "Yeah, now you just write about someone walking 2.5 miles every day, and boy, are they losing the weight." LOL I'm afraid he's right. :D Onward and Upward.