Facing an Empty Nest and (Hopefully) and end to Tests

Summer is taking a long time to arrive here. It's been cool and damp all spring with only the odd day of sunshine.

In the midst of finishing my draft of Book #9 and the start of summer vacation, my youngest son graduates from high school. It's been just he and I for the past three years since his older brother moved out and went to college. His oldest brother has lived 4 hours away for several years now. They have all become amazing young men and I'm excited to see what life holds in store for them.

So now, as I told a friend today, it will just be me and two cats. Apparently, I'm not officially a crazy cat lady until I have three cats, so I'm holding off on making that leap. I'm not ready for three fur babies just yet.

What I do have, are my books, my ideas for building my writing career and filling a few shelves with my own novels. I also have a great partner who encourages me every step of the way and attends a lot of writing events with me. I'm even getting him to take pictures now and then!

I still work full-time, which once my house is empty will get me out and around people. Meeting people and walking around town always inspires me. I've ended up with some great pictures and a whole shelf full of ideas to work on.

Over the next week, I have a series of medical tests to go through. Pulmonary assessments, endoscopy, colonoscopy, then... Life will change regardless of the outcome. Gluten and dairy-free will become a way of life - no cheating or I'll be sick all over again. I've decided I kind of like being able to walk and am tired of the stairs being a challenge everyday. I also like being able to breathe without puffers and not feel sick to my stomach or have swollen joints all the time.

So that's it.
This summer, my health comes first.
As well as getting my son ready for college...
Plus spending time with my honey...
And a thorough edit of Book 9...
Maybe even writing a new book...
It's going to be a good summer!

In other news:

I'm looking forward to building my writing career as well as adding some guest spots to my blog and finding some awesome writers for you to read. Watch for that this fall!

In the meantime, I'll pop on here from time to time and give you a taste of what's to come.

I'll also have to find a way to incorporate this cute little chair into everything

Gotta love garage sales!

Round Robin Blog Fest Feb 16 2019

With a snow storm outside and my knee limiting my physical activities, what a better time to jump in and rejoin the Blog Fest with a new post. That and I get to share some great news! I have a new book released as of February 14th!

Glitter Bay Mystery Series

Book 1:  All That Sparkles

What do a trunk full of vintage clothes, a handsome land developer, and a fifty year old diamond heist have in common? Laken Miller receives a trunk full of expensive vintage clothing and a stack of newspaper clippings about a fifty-year old diamond heist. Now all she has to do is figure out who murdered Tilly San Vicente before the killer silences her as well.

And now back to the Blog Fest question of the month:  

Love, sex, and relationships are part of many books. What seems acceptable, what do you think current readers want, and what (for you) is going to far?

I think readers read such a wide variety of genres, heat levels, and deviant types of books that there really is no longer unacceptable materials - depending on your target market. Something like Fifty-Shades of Gray began as Twilight fan fiction. A book for teens and young adults. In fact, I know many people who write erotica and sell very well.

When it comes to my books, however, I prefer to keep the heat at a low simmer which seems to go better with cozy mysteries. Probably the steamiest novel I've written was The Bakery Lady that sees Leo Blue run into a woman he can't resist, Christina Davidson:

     Christina folded her arms across her chest. “Are you here to buy something or just stand here and psychoanalyze me to death?”

    “I’ll take a dozen éclairs and a half dozen cookies.” He straightened up. “All I’m saying is that every other shop in town is all decked out for the holidays and you don’t have so much as a candy cane or the radio on, which I know you have since Clancy turned the music on yesterday.”

    “And?” She walked into the warmth of the back room, trying to pretend he wasn’t there. The smell of his cologne mingled with the fresh baking as she opened the oven door. “I think you should go now.”

    “And I think you need to show a little Christmas spirit.” Leo followed, pausing to hold his hands in front of the open oven door and bask in the warmth. He wore a leather bomber jacket and a cheery red scarf which clashed with his spiked red hair, but he didn’t seem to care. “By the way, I still want cookies and dozen éclairs.”

    While Clancy had mentioned Leo was a boxer and martial artist, she hadn’t realized that meant he enjoyed picking fights outside the ring with five-foot-nothing women covered in enriched white flour. She nudged him out of the way, put several trays of raw cookie dough into the oven then shut the door before Leo could get too comfortable. “So I’m not into Christmas. Big deal. Not everyone in the world is, you know.”

    “You used to be. Clancy told me so.”

I have read books with far more heat than that, but I'm not so sure I could write one without copious amounts of wine to loosen my inhibitions! Let alone what my mother would say! Lol! My ears are red just thinking about it!

For me personally, when it comes to books, and even to movies, I find the innuendo is far sexier than the in-your-face descriptions. I like a little bit of sexual tension between my characters, both in books I write and the ones I read. A little bit of heat from a furtive look, a touch of skin, a lingering kiss... Is it hot in here?

Now that you've heard from me, let's see what the other writers think:

Margaret Fieland 

Skye Taylor 
Victoria Chatham 
Beverley Bateman 
A.J. Maguire  
Marci Baun  
Dr. Bob Rich 
 And our fearless leader:   Rhobin L Courtright 

New Year, New Challenges

As I wrote in my last blog, I joined the Orangeville Art Group this year. Yesterday, I not only got two of my paintings hung in one of their 3 local displays but I got a new job to do. I'll find out more details at our meeting on Tuesday but it involves contacting three local high schools and finding new art and artists to encourage. The other jobs they had available at the moment were President and Vice President. I figured those were challenges I wasn't quite ready for yet!

Today the Headwaters Writers Group met at our new location. The local library decided that for writers to meet and write on their premises, we would have to pay to rent the room like everyone else. We decided we could do better. And we did. One of our members got us a room at a local church which, ironically, is named after Lord Tweedsmuir whose real name is John Buchan. John's most famous literary work is The Thirty-Nine Steps, which was later turned into an Alfred Hitchcock movie. That knowledge made the church feel a lot more like home!

Some of the things I've decided to accomplish this year are:
1) Finish and submit the first of my three novels. Well, it is finished but needed some work, which is what I've been doing lately. Making it longer and stronger.

2) work on the other two novels so that when I do get attention from an agent or publisher, I'll have a lot to offer.

3) work on and complete one painting per month. That doesn't sound like much but when you already have kids, work, volunteer work, etc . . . it's an extra challenge but one I need.

4) work on my dad's memoirs and make them something publishable. That will take a lot longer than the novels will!

Watch for more paintings to appear. More excitement as my writing gets more attention. And check out some of my links. There is a lot of stuff going on in 2010!

Happy New Year

It's been a long and interesting Christmas break but now I'm ready to get back to work. I plan to work on some editing of one of my novels and hope to begin resubmitting work later this year.

The anthology I have a short story in will also be out this year. I'm excited. My writing project I actually get paid for! It won't be the last. I promise.

I have joined the Orangeville Art Group this year to kick things up a notch. I'm looking forward to their guidance and support to help me become a better artist. Of course, making new friends is always a plus!