Sara B. Larson

Monday Motivation

2012-02-06T12:16:00.000-08:00

"There are two types of people: those who come into a room and say, 'Well, here I am!' and those who come in and say, 'Ah, there you are.'" - Frederick L. Collins

Today, I am grateful for friends and family who are the second type of people; those who care about others rather than trying to seek attention and praise for themselves. I am grateful for critique partners and friends in this crazy writing world who say, "you are not alone"--even though sometimes this business can feel lonely.

I hope I have been, and can continue to be, that type of person to others as well. Wouldn't this world be a happier place if more people were like that?

Who has been there for you in your life or in your writing career that you are grateful for today?

**Also, for those of you who have been following Josh and Megan's story... he has been moved up to have an immediate bone marrow transplant to try and save his life. Out of his family, only one person matched him--his sister. But the miracle is that she is a PERFECT match. He is going in to the transplant room for 14 days to have his immune system obliterated and then when he hits zero, he will have the transplant and a new "birthday" because he will be like a newborn. He is going to have to rebuild his immune system from scratch, even repeating immunizations and everything. If you could please keep him in thoughts and prayers, I know they would appreciate it.

Monday Motivation

2012-01-30T05:00:00.000-08:00

"Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of."
- Benjamin Franklin

What are you going to do this week to make the most of the time you've been given this week?

SHH just got back from Philadelphia late Friday night. He also recently read Benjamin Franklin's autobiography. He's been telling me all about his life and reading me quotes from the book. He's a pretty smart guy. (SHH and Benjamin, he he.) It was really an amazing opportunity for SHH to go see the actual buildings where good ole Benji had his printing office, his grave in Christchurch,the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and more. What an incredibly accomplished man--even beyond the "famous" things he did. So, in honor of Mr. Franklin, here are a couple more great quotes:

"Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do."
- Benjamin Franklin

'Nuff said, right??

"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing."
-Benjamin Franklin

I sure hope I can accomplish both to be honest. Love that quote.

Happy Monday!

Friday Four or Five

2012-01-20T05:00:00.000-08:00

1. I hear it's snowing a lot around the country. Not here. Nope. It's so spring like here I'm afraid the trees are going to start budding. And then the snow will hit in April or something and when the pools are supposed to open in June, they'll be buried under two feet of snow. Hopefully not. But I'm slightly concerned.

2. Sometimes I set goals for myself that are a little bit crazy. And then I scramble around trying to figure out how to get everything done (because I've set myself up for failure by trying to do too many things at once) and I end up forgetting things like showering or sending a check for lunch money to school with my son or returning my library books. #totalstepfordwifefail (At least they still let him eat lunch, but the library account isn't looking so hot. I could buy a book for the price of all the fines I accrued, dang it.)

3. Today I take Baby Girl in for a repeat echo on her heart. One of the holes she was born with constricted her aorta when it closed. Today they are making sure that corrected itself in the last few months. Fingers are tightly crossed for good news.

4. Miracles exist and my cousin's husband is one of them. He is out of the ICU, he is getting a little bit stronger every day--he IS going to beat this cancer. I just know it. Thank you all SO so much for your prayes and thoughts. He's still got a long road ahead, but I know he can make it.

5. There isn't really anything else that can top that last one. It should be my one and only thought for the day, really. So I'm going to stop now.

What's on your mind today?

What's HOT?

2012-01-17T06:58:00.000-08:00

So, for most of us, it's pretty cold out there right now. But today I'm bringing the heat.

Okay, not really. Not that type of heat anyway.

I'm talking about what's HOT in publishing. I read this post by agent Rachelle Gardner and it got me thinking: what is hot right now? And should you try and chase down that ellusive heat?

I don't have any answers, I'm actually wondering what you think the answers are. The market is a different place right now than it was two or three years ago. It's even different than just one year ago.

All I know is that you have to write what you love. Because even if you think you're writing something "hot," agents and editors might disagree with you. Or you could be writing something just for fun and have it get snatched up. I honestly don't think it's possible to predict what will be hot or not. Not easily, and not very often, anyway. Right now, I keep hearing what isn't selling, what isn't hot. I'm not sure if there is any one HOT genre/topic right now, in YA at least.

So, tell me--what do you think the future of publishing holds (particularly for those of you in YA)? Is anything HOT right now in your opinion or from your experience? And even more importantly, does it matter to you?

'Tis the Season...

2012-01-09T18:46:00.000-08:00

For RSV. Bummer.

3 kids and up until now we'd managed to avoid RSV. There's few things worse than having a sick baby. As a mom, I feel so helpless. I want to heal her, to take away the pain, the struggle to breathe. All I can do is hold her and rock her and comfort her. So far, we're not in the hospital. Let's hope it stays that way.

So... anyone want to bring me some good books? Looks like we're going to be home bound for a little while... I know there are some releasing (or that have been recently released) that I'm dying to read. Wouldn't it be great if book stores delivered to your door? Oh wait, I guess they do. Huh. Suppose I should start doing more shopping online.

What book are you looking forward to reading the most right now?

Update

2012-01-04T14:36:00.001-08:00

For all of my wonderful friends who are fasting and/or praying for Josh and Megan, he is making forward progress!! He responded to her today, squeezing her hand and even giving her a smile. He's also starting to fight the ventilator (which is why his hands are strapped down). We are hoping he will continue to fight back, and get better and better! Meg told us yesterday was one of the worst days of her life. She could barely get out of bed this morning she was so exhausted physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Her mom was at the hospital with him early this morning, and couldn't get him to respond to anything (they'd lowered his sedation just slightly to see if he'd respond to commands) -- until she told him she was going to go get Meg. Then he squeezed her hand so tight. That story alone is what got Megan out of bed and rushing to his side.

They love each other so much, and I know that love, and the prayers and the love of all those around them (those who know them and those who are praying for them just because you know some of us who love them) are making all the difference!! Thank you all so much! Please continue to keep them in your thoughts and prayers. It is a VERY long road ahead, but we are grateful today for tender mercies and tiny victories. :) We love you guys!!

A plea

2012-01-03T15:36:00.000-08:00

As I have been writing out my goals for the new year, we've had some events happen in our family that really put life in perspective. Some of you may remember these two posts from October about my beautiful cousin and her husband...: I'm gonna love you through it and this one about my race and an update on him.

Things have been up and down ever since. There have been triumphs and setbacks. There have been questions without answers, and hope in the face of discouragement. Holidays have come and gone, and his prognosis has gone up and down. But right now, things are not looking so good.

Right now, Josh is in the highest level of ICU, on a ventilator. He has been getting so SO sick between chemo treatments--extremely high fevers, all sorts of problems, and the doctors have been baffled. Unable to find answers. Today, they finally figured out he has HLH, an extremely rare disease that complicates fighting his cancer even more. He just finished what was supposed to be his last round of chemo a couple of weeks ago, but with this new diagnosis, he must be started on an aggressive 9 week treatment program of chemo and steroids right away. Here's what Megan wrote today:

Josh's heart rate went crazy last night. His lungs are filled with liquid. His body is super swollen from all the liquid that is inside him from meds. He has gained 25-30 pounds in water weight. They put a tube down his throat that will breathe for him. Also they are controlling his blood pressure. He has a feeding tube and a catheter. He has pneumonia. Many have asked what they can do; please pray for my sweet husband. There will be a fast for him from lunch today to lunch tmrw for those who would like to join. My heart is full of gratitude for the prayers and love that have been given to us. I love you Joshua!

Please, if you are willing to, pray for my cousin and her husband. She's been told that they will have to take it day by day, and there are no guarantees right now.

I've been trying to come up with goals about writing, parenting, exercise, finances and more. His only goal right now is to survive. To live. To beat the monster that is cancer. How often do we take for granted the supreme gift of life? To be able to breathe, to run, to play and laugh and sing and LIVE? I know I have.

So, I guess I just want to say to Megan and Josh: We love you guys so much, and we are all praying for you with all of our might and faith. I know miracles happen, and that if it's the Lord's will, you will get yours. <3 <3 I guess that's the hardest part of faith--is accepting the Lord's will. For now, I am determined to believe that His will is for Josh to live. He is a fighter. Josh, we love you!

2012!

2012-01-02T16:52:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone!

It's that time of year again: Christmas is over and holiday detox takes place quickly followed by a mad flurry of goal-making and sudden influxes of large groups of people to the local gyms. My family and I are sitting down tonight to do our annual tradition of writing down our new goals. We like to break them up into categories:

Daily goals, weekly goals, monthly, yearly, and future (3-5 years).

We then print off the nicely typed list and stick it on our bathroom mirror to help remind us of these goals throughout the year. We don't always accomplish all of them (ha ha), but we do try. And writing them down and looking at them multiple times a day certainly helps keep them in our minds. I've often heard that if you write something down, you are much more likely to actually do it. We have found this to be true.

So tell me, what are some of your goals this year? I'm excited to sit down and start with a fresh, blank document to make a new list of goals tonight. I'll have to let you know some of the ones we come up with for 2012!

6 months already...

2011-12-28T08:40:00.000-08:00

Can you believe this was me 6 months ago? Oh my! What a belly!

That's what a 22 inch baby looks like squished into a human tummy, I suppose!

I can't believe my baby girl is 6 months old today! (She spent a lot of her time in the nursery being tested, monitored, treated, etc. for some complications.) Thankfully, she was able to come home with us on time. I am just so obsessively in love with her. I can't get enough of my sweet baby! We ALL adore her. My boys and my husband are completely wrapped around her (very long, future piano playing) fingers.

How could we not adore her? Look at that beautiful face, and all that hair! She is such a sweetheart.

How come time flies by so quickly?
I can't believe the last 6 months have sped by so fast. It's gone faster than it did with either of my boys. They are all growing up too fast. I can't believe I have a 1st grader, and SonB is turning 3 in 2 weeks. Why is it that the things we want to hurry up and happen (*cough* a book deal *cough, cough*) take so long, and the things we want to slow down and cherish (my children growing up) flashes by in a blink of an eye?
She is such a light and joy in our family. This grin makes our day!

Sweet Baby Girl, I love you so much! 6 months... wow.

p.s. Time to do some professional portraits... Erin I'm looking at you! ;)

Wishing You and Yours...

2011-12-24T07:10:00.000-08:00

A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Flashback post #1 : 'Tis the Season...

2011-12-21T10:15:00.000-08:00

From December 2010

Tis the Season...
To be way behind on everything. Including posting today. Whoops. Sorry about that!
(Ironic that this post is so relevant to me right now still! Our house got hit with the flu the last two days--well, just my boys, but trust me, it was a veritable body fluid fun fest. Blech. Anyway, the point is, I'm behind on everything again!)

I found this quote today, and it seemed an appropriate one for me. Maybe you will find it inspiring as well.

"There is only one way to happiness, and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will." - Epictetus

I have said it before, I tend to be a worrier. I used to worry that I worried too much. The older I am, and the more things I "get" to worry about (two children [3 now!], mortgages, bills, health, etc., etc.), I've slowly begun to learn not to worry so much. It was either that, or go insane. I can't control everything. In fact, there are very few things I can actually control at all. That are "within the power of my will." I have to focus on doing my best with the things I can control and have trust and faith that everything else will work out the way it is supposed to.

Even in writing, we have a lot we can control, but there is so much that we can't. Elana Johnson did a fabulous post about "luck" in the process of getting published and it really hit home for me, and probably a lot of you. We all have to keep working hard, honing our craft (no matter what stage we're at--querying agents, on submission with editors, or published author working on subsequent books), and moving forward. But there are always things we can't control that could cause us worry. Will this agent/editor love my writing enough to offer to represent me/buy it? Will my book sell well? Will I get another deal? Will I be able to write another book as good as my first one? There are always worries. But I'm trying to learn to let them go.

I've yet to read a study telling us how good worrying is for our mental or physical health. So I am consciously trying to worry less--to do what I can do, and let go of the rest. How about you? What are you worried about? And can you do anything about it or not?

Friday Five

2011-12-16T05:00:00.000-08:00

1. Any of you watching "Once Upon a Time?" What do you think so far?
I actually really like it. BUT. After this last episode, I have to admit, I'm beginning to feel like I need SOMETHING good to happen soon or else... well, I don't know. I just need to feel like there is some sort of hope. Because right now? Not so much. What do you think Rumpelstiltskin is up to?

2. That got me thinking about writing... how much can you put your characters through before it's too much? How long can you keep a reader interested without offering hope? Just a thought.

3. I want to get my six-year-old some books for Christmas. Any suggestions of good chapter books that would interest him? Nothing too mature obviously, but not a picture book either. He's in this in between stage, so that I'm not quite sure what to get for him.

4. I'm in a strange place with my writing right now. I have a couple different ideas that I've started and then haven't been able to decide if I should continue with them or not. I really need to finish something again. It's been too long (almost a year) since I wrote an entire book from scratch. Edited, revised, started, plotted, sure. But start to finish complete a new book? Nope. Granted, I had a baby this year, and I have been busy working on books for my agent. But still, I feel this strange sense of dissatisfaction with myself right now that I know stems from not creating anything new for a while. Hopefully I can get down to it soon.

5. Thank you all for your very kind comments on my last post. I guess I'll just keep on keeping on.

Happy Friday--and Merry Christmas next week! For the next two weeks, I'm going to be posting some of my older (but [in my opinion] still great) posts. I'll be back with new posts in the New Year. (Unless inspiration strikes before then, of course.) Hope you all have a great finish to 2011!

Direction

2011-12-14T08:26:00.000-08:00

I, like many other bloggers, am beginning to wonder what direction to take my blog. More of the same? Or something different?

Has that ever happened to you in life or in writing? You're going along, thinking everything is the same... until it's not. Tiny little changes along the way end up taking your story (or life) in a totally different direction than you were planning. What do you do? Stop and try and get back to the plan? Or do you go with the change, see where it leads?

As for my blog, I'm wondering what YOU would like more (or less) of? There are so many amazing blogs out there full of any advice I could ever give you, and blogs that are far more hysterical than I could hope to be, so I'm not quite sure where I fall. I suppose I'll just keep going along with whatever post inspires me for that day. But if you have thoughts or suggestions of what YOU like to read the most, what brings YOU back--let me know in the comments and I'll do my best to make this the best blog I possibly can.

Do you feel like the blogging world is changing? Or does it still feel the same to you?

Happy Wednesday!

Climb every mountain...

2011-12-07T05:57:00.000-08:00

Yes, I do love The Sound of Music. Have I succeeded in getting my boys to watch it with me yet? No. But that isn't the point of this post.

What is the point?

Have you ever gone on a really hard, long hike? And you keep thinking, "this was supposed to be a fun little jaunt up the mountain, and I feel like I've been hiking forEVER!" And soon, the treeline has disappeared, and you're dragging your sorry butt across rock and shale with a frigid wind beating against you, and you start to feel like you're a pioneer trudging to unchattered lands and you might have to lay down and die right then and there?

NO? Really, was it just me?

Okay, I might have been twelve or thirteen, and we were hiking Table Rock (the second highest peak next to the Grand Teton in that range), and I might have had a flair for the dramatic. BUT. The point is that when I finally did make it to the very top (shockingly, still alive!), WOW. It was amazing. All my exhaustion and complaints disappeared, and I was left with a sense of accomplishment and peace and excitement to see the world from this new, incredible vantage point. And then my sisters and cousins and I ran all the way back down the mountain, our adrenaline pumping and our faces plastered with perma-grins.

The point is that if we keep climbing, we will eventually reach the summit and find out what the view is like from up there. Even if it means going above the treeline and pushing on through wind, cold, and exhaustion.

What mountains are you climbing right now?

A Writer's Plea

2011-12-02T05:00:00.000-08:00

In case you didn't click on the link in my last post, here is "A writer's plea" by K. Marie Criddle, for your Friday reading pleasure:
Awesome, right?

You've got to go read this

2011-11-30T07:10:00.000-08:00

So, since I don't know if the author would care if I copied and pasted her awesome "plea" on my blog, I'm going to just post the link. Seriously, go read this. I LOVE it. So funny, and SO true!

http://kmcriddle.blogspot.com/2011/11/writers-plea.html

Happy Wednesday!

Tell the Truth Tuesday

2011-11-29T09:29:00.000-08:00

Here are some of my truths today:

1- I'm scared of the dark. I hate having to get up at night and do anything because I always think there's someone hiding in the shadows, waiting to get me.

2- Nightmares stink. Unless they spur an idea for a book. Unfortunately, the nightmare I had last night didn't spur an idea for a book, it was just plain awful. Basically there were two gigantic snakes, and one of them ended up attacking my mom and trying to kill her. Yeah, not a good idea for a book.

3- I totally failed at NaNo this year. I kind of knew I shouldn't sign up, because there was just too much going on to dedicate myself to it, but I did anyway. And now I'm a failure. Bummer.

3- On the bright side, I did manage to run my Thanksgiving Day Human Race and get my Thanksgiving dinner on the table last week (I hosted my whole family). My 6-yr-old ended up running it with us (and my husband had to push the other two kids in the stroller because our babysitter bugged out on us at the last minute). But he did great! He actually would have placed 11th in his age division if we'd had a bib for him. I was a proud Mama.

4- Baby weight stinks to get rid of, not to mention what it does to the skin on your belly. In a totally unrelated thought, does anyone else think that Mariah Carey had a tummy tuck? Because I saw the picture of her saying, "look at how skinny I am now after twins" or something like that on the cover of People, and her belly button didn't look too natural anymore. I'm just sayin'...

5- When SHH is out of town for work, I have a hard time wanting to make "real" meals for dinner. Or breakfast. Or any meal for that matter. It's just so much work when I only seem to have a 50/50 chance that my kids will actually eat more than 3 bites. (Their appetites come and go faster than a Black Friday deal at Wal Mart.) But I'm actually making a full on meal today--the best chicken pot pie recipe ever, jello salad, dessert, the whole works. My truth is that it's not really for my family, it's for a neighbor. I'm just doubling the recipe for our dinner, because it would be really lame to make it for someone else and not get to eat it myself.

What are your truths today? Lay 'em on me -- success, failure, whatever it may be.

I love good books, like...

2011-11-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

Remember the book I teased you about last week? The one that I loved? Well... here it is!

Dragons exist. They’re ferocious. And they’re smart: Before they were killed off by slayer-knights, they rendered a select group of eggs dormant, so their offspring would survive. Only a handful of people know about this, let alone believe it – these “Slayers” are descended from the original knights, and are now a diverse group of teens that includes Tori, a smart but spoiled senator’s daughter who didn’t sign up to save the world.

The dragon eggs have fallen into the wrong hands. The Slayers must work together to stop the eggs from hatching. They will fight; they will fall in love. But will they survive?

And the author graciously agreed to do an interview with me! C.J. Hill happens to be a friend of mine (and in a not so well guarded secret, is actually a pen name of a well known YA author). Do you know how she really is?

1. How did you come up with the idea for SLAYERS (for those who don't know yet)?

The idea for Slayers came from the various things. One of those things is my own clumsiness. Sometimes I wake up in the morning and find I have new scratches or bruises. I have no idea of where I got them. My husband is understandably perplexed by this phenomenon. He has often asked me, "Were you with your body all yesterday?" I got tired of trying to make excuses for my own clumsiness, so I told him that while he sleeps I live a double life and secretly fights dragons. And then, because I'm a writer, I began to wonder what it would be like to fight dragons. Who would fight dragons and why?

Another thing that contributed to the plot of Slayers, is cicadas. Some cicadas have a 17 year life cycle. They live dormant underneath the ground for most of those years, and only come out once every 17 years. This way, predators can't depend on them as a food source. I lived in Maryland during one of those years and thoughts the rise of the cicadas from the underworld was especially creepy. I wondered what other creatures might be lurking unknown in the ground, just waiting for the right time to emerge. I grew up on Godzilla movies so dinosaurs were high on that worry list.

Slayers doesn't have any dinosaurs, but dragons are even worse. Dragons not only breathe fire, they fly. My dragons also emit electromagnetic pulses which fry electronic components. Let's just say these aren't Eargon's dragons.

She's not kidding! No friendly dragons to be found here, but I loved the world she created. Isn't it crazy where our ideas for books can come from?

2. Who was your favorite character to write in the book, and why?

There were lots of fun characters to write about in Slayers. I loved Bess's sense of humor, and I loved Dirk's internal conflicts, but Tori was the funnest character to write. She is so out of place with the rest of the slayers that it makes for some funny scenes.

I was curious what your answer would be because there are so many great characters in this book.

3. When does the sequel come out?

Not soon enough for the fans that keep e-mailing me asking me when the next book is due. Let's just say I'm still working on the manuscript. I will say though, that we'll see a lot more of Ryker and Willow in the next story.

I can't wait! What do I need to do to bribe an advanced copy from you?? (I'm actually not kidding about that part...)

4. What's your favorite dessert?

I'm not picky when it comes to dessert. I love them all. Of course, I love desserts with chocolate the most. Suddenly I'm thinking of Almond Joys. Mmmm. My happy place.

Those are SHH's favorite, too!

5. How did you get to be so funny?

I think my inner child never grew up. I don't take a lot of things seriously. Sometimes in life you've got to either laugh or cry. I think it's better to laugh.

That's so true, and great advice, too.

Thanks so much for the interview! It was fun to find out some new things about SLAYERS and you!

If you haven't picked this book up yet, hurry and get a copy. You won't be disappointed!

P.S. Sarah Allen never claimed her prize (bummer)... but that means a new person is my lucky winner. This time the Random Number Generator picked:

Linda: Book Ninja!!

Congratulations! Please comment or email me your email address so I can get your ecopy of BECOME gifted to you! (sarablarson21 [at] gmail [dot] com)

Friday Four or Five: the late edition

2011-11-18T14:13:00.000-08:00

1. First of all, Sarah Allen has yet to claim her prize (an ecopy of BECOME). If she doesn't email or comment with her email by Sunday night, I will pick a new winner and announce him/her on Monday.

2. Here's the deal. I love movies. I love movie soundtracks. I listen to original scores all the time while writing. I picture my books playing out like movies in my head at night (and when I'm writing, too). When I read, I visualize scenes like a movie in my mind. So, when people make books into movies, I'm all "yay!" Unless I see the movie and they destroy it. Ahem, HP6, ahem. (And many others...) But then, there are books that were just so, um,... yeah... to begin with, that the movie is all messed up before it ever had a chance.

3. I may have seen Breaking Dawn last night. I might have laughed. A lot. Sometimes it was supposed to be funny (why can't her dad and Alice be in every scene??); sometimes... not so much. (There was this one scene with the wolf pack, and loud booming voices and laughter--except that part was coming from me and my sisters and my mom and my friends.) (Or that other part where a certain baby and wolf make eye contact and heavenly choirs begin to sing of imprinting and the whole theater was laughing.) But, don't take my word for it. Lots of people seemed to like the movie a lot. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mood.

4. Wanna know what movie based on a book looks like they nailed it? The Hunger Games. I've watched that preview multiple times, and it makes me get teary-eyed every time. "I volunteer!" Oh baby, I can't wait for that one! I was really hoping they'd show that preview last night, but alas...

5. I just read an awesome book this week, that you'll get to hear more about soon (maybe even on Monday). I love reading awesome books. Now, if only I could write one... Have I mentioned that NaNo isn't going so well? Sigh.

So, what's on your mind this week?

And the winner is...

2011-11-16T07:51:00.000-08:00

The random number generator has spoken and the winner is...

Sarah Allen!!

*tosses confetti*

Congratulations!! Either comment or email me your email address (sarablarson21 [at] gmail [dot] com) so I can gift your ebook to you!

Thank you all for entering and supporting Ali and BECOME!

What will you BECOME...?

2011-11-15T05:00:00.000-08:00

I am lucky enough to participate in a huge giveaway celebrating the release of the ever awesome, amazing, dojo master Ali Cross's book BECOME!!

(Find out all the details here on Elana's blog!)

Wanna know what it's about?

The Twitter version: (tell us about your book in 140 characters or less:) “The devil's daughter is sent to Earth where she must face the evil she despises and the good she's always feared.”

The Long Version:

Sixteen-year old Desolation Black wants nothing more than to stay in Hell where it’s cold and lonely and totally predictable. Instead, she’s sent back to Earth where she must face the evil she despises and the good she always feared. When Desi is forced to embrace her inner demon, she assumes her choice has been made—that she has no hope of being anything other than what her father, Lucifer, has created her to be. What she doesn’t count on, is finding a reason to change—something she’s never had before—a friend.

Sounds great, right?? I've read the first chapter of this book, and I can't wait for my copy to come so I can read the rest! And wow, isn't that cover incredible? I love it!

All you have to do to be entered for a chance to win your own e-copy of BECOME is leave a comment on today's post. That's it. :)

And stay tuned for your other 14 chances to win a copy!! Here is the schedule:

5 chances on blogs according to the following schedule:
Monday: Missed your chance...
Tuesday: Sara Larson (RIGHT NOW!)
Wednesday: Stacy Henrie
Thursday: LT Elliot
Friday: Nichole Giles

5 chances on twitter according to the following schedule:
Monday, November 14 - 11 am MST, 1 pm Eastern
Tuesday, November 15 - 7 pm MST, 9 pm Eastern
Wednesday, November 16 - 1 pm MST, 3 pm Eastern
Thursday, November 17 - 4 pm PST, 7 pm Eastern
Friday, November 18 - 3 pm MST, 5 pm Eastern

We'll be chatting with the hashtag #BECOME so join us for your chance to mix and mingle and win!

FIVE more chances by filling out this google form from the awesome Elana J's blog!

If you'd like to purchase a copy, you can do so HERE.

Good luck! I will announce the winner tomorrow morning!

Monday Motivation

2011-11-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."
-Aristotle

Wise words to start off this week, don't you think? What habits are you currently cultivating that will lead to excellence? Or what ones do you need to be cultivating?

Monday Motivation

2011-11-07T10:31:00.000-08:00

NaNoWriMo. (National Novel Writing Month.)

I haven't ever done it before. I'm a pretty fast writer, so I've honestly never felt the need to try and force myself to get a book done in a month. When inspiration hits, I can whip out a book in 4-5 weeks. Not always, but sometimes.

But this time, I decided to bite the bullet and do it. Why? Because I'm in a bit of a slump. I have a new idea, but I'm having a hard time making myself find the time to write. Maybe it's because SHH is traveling so much, so I don't have help with the kids at night so I can write like I used to. And by the time I get them all to bed and could write, I am so worn out emotionally and physically from not getting a break, I can barely find the energy and motivation to get myself ready for bed and try to read a book, let alone write one.

But, my goal is for this to be a career. So I'm treating it like one, and making myself put in the time. Signing up for NaNo was my way of trying to get myself to do it this month. I got off to a good start, but had a crazy weekend and now I'm behind. I'll keep going though, and hopefully I'll at least hit the 50k, if not finish the entire novel.

How about you? Are you doing NaNo? How do you make yourself stay motivated and moving forward when you're overwhelmed and exhausted?

Good News... and even greater news!!

2011-10-31T13:09:00.001-07:00

So... first, the good news. A recap of my race:

Here we are, sitting in a "heated tent" (it didn't feel heated for at least an hour after we got there), waiting for over three hours for our race to start. Some of us (and I think it's pretty easy to see who, although one is doing a good job of pretending) are wondering "how did I get dragged into this? And why did I pay money to get up at 4 am to get bussed up a canyon and freeze for hours before running 13.1 miles??"

They started the race in two waves, and we went with the second. The first few miles were awesome, I barely even felt like I was running. The canyon was gorgeous, it was just wonderful. Except that my sister and mom got lost behind my aunt and me somewhere. Then at mile 4 my aunt started slowing up a bit, but waved for me to keep my pace. I decided to keep going since we'd already lost my mom and sister miles before this point.

Then I hit mile 6 and oh. my. heck. (Yes, I'm from Utah.) I started having crazy pain in the weirdest places. The backs of my ankles and lower calves, my hip flexors--just random, strange places where I'd never had pain before. Ever. I'd never hurt so bad running before, and I have no idea why it happened to me on race day. My 10 mile run the week before had felt great, so I was not expecting this run to be so hard. At least, not at mile 6.

Here I am, pausing for a quick picture by stunning Bridal Veil Falls, more than half way through the race.

By mile 7 and 8 I was running out steam already. WHAT THE...?? This was NOT supposed to happen. I'd trained, I'd felt great on all of my long runs, I couldn't figure out what was going on. I kept going, forcing myself to keep running even though I was so tempted to walk. Especially when more and more people around me began walking instead of running. At mile 9 I texted my husband and told him I was completely out of energy. Somehow I kept going, thinking "I can do hard things" and finding good songs on my playlist to keep me motivated.

Then I hit mile 11. I was dying. The pain was horrible, my legs felt like someone had beat me with a sledgehammer, and I was beyond exhausted. I'd never had this hard of a time on a run, ever. Did I mention that already? Well, it's true. I thought to myself: I can either give up and switch off walking and running the rest of the way and at least I'll finish; or I can somehow find the energy to push through this and keep running. I wanted so badly to run the whole way. Then it hit me.

I dedicated this race to Josh and Megan, and was I going to give up now, when I was this close?

I'd gone and visited him the night before my race at the cancer institute to celebrate his 24th birthday. I thought of him up there, fighting cancer, strong and brave and so positive, and I told myself, "if he can fight this cancer, I can run this race!" And suddenly, I could. I had tears in my eyes, but I was able to push through and found reserves of energy I didn't know I had. For the last 2.1 miles whenever the exhaustion and pain crept back in, I thought of Josh, and I told myself, "he's going to beat this cancer, and I'm going to run this race!"

And I did.

This is such a goofy picture of me, but it shows the energy I somehow found for the end of the race. The finish was just ahead, and I caught sight of my beautiful little family cheering for me, and I was cheering back and waving. SonA came running to me, grabbed my hand, and ran the rest of the way to the finish with me.

It was amazing, and such an incredibly touching experience. Josh, somehow you got me through this race. Your courage and strength inspired me, and pushed me on. I ran for you.

After the finish with my awesome new medal. I finished in 2:27:37, averaging an 11:17 mile. I know that's not too impressive to all my running friends (I'm looking at you Ally-Miss-7:30-minute-mile! Dang, girl!), but for me, I was so happy with this time for my first race, 4 months and one day after having my baby girl. I've only been running for a year and three months, and nine of the months I was pregnant. ;)

Afterwards, with all of us (my bro-in-law rode up with us and ran it, too, but he's speedy and went in the first group). Only after the race did my Aunt tell us she'd also run the race for Josh. You may notice her shoes are off, and if you look closely, her socks are soaked in blood. She had to run with her shoes off the last mile, with every toe bleeding to finish the race. Later, she and my parents went up to Huntsmans where she gave Josh her medal, and told him next year, he's running it with us. It was a very emotional and amazing day.

And here's the even greater news:

(Friday night at Huntsmans with Josh and Megan, celebrating his birthday.)

On Friday, Josh was supposed to do another round of chemo. Instead, he spiked yet another fever, and the doctor's decided they needed to do another PET scan and bone marrow biopsy. They believed his cancer was progressing even faster than they thought and that's what was causing the fevers. In a complete miracle, Josh found out on Saturday, after we ran our race, that instead of progressing, his cancer is getting the *&$% beat out of it!! ALL of his tumors are gone. COMPLETELY GONE. He still has some cancer cells, but they believe after he finishes his chemo treatments, and does his bone marrow transplant, that the cancer will be completely eradicated.

Miracles happen. We are witnessing one right now. I know all of the prayers and faith of those surrounding him and Megan are being answered.

Remember my last post? How I said, "we can do hard things"? Well, we did.

I'm gonna love you through it...

2011-10-26T05:00:00.000-07:00

Wanna know a secret? Sometimes "Life" isn't fair. Sometimes we have to do hard things. Sometimes we choose to do hard things, and sometimes we don't get a choice.

I am running a half marathon (my first ever) on Saturday morning. One day after Baby Girl turns 4 months old. It has been an intense goal to meet in such a short time after her birth, and I've spent quite a few runs repeating my mantra in my mind: "I can do hard things."

But now it's here, and I can't wait. I may not be the fastest, or in the best shape, but I am determined to finish. Isn't that what really counts in the end? To run a good race--and to finish the race?

I have pursued publication for years. Has it been hard? Yes. Have I had some blows that were so rough that I could barely drag myself back up? Yes. Am I still going, working, dreaming, actively pursuing my goal--my lifelong dream of being published? Yes, I am. Because I can do hard things.

But suddenly, none of these things matter that much when a truly HARD thing hits someone you love. Something they have no control over, that they had no choice in having to deal with. I chose to sign up for this race, I chose to pursue publication. My beautiful cousin and her husband DID NOT CHOOSE to have to do something this hard. I'd like you to meet Megan and Josh:
This was their gorgeous wedding day, two years ago. A beautiful young couple, full of hope and life and promise and joy.

This is them just last March (and my sister and her DH as well).

Just before they went to Mexico to celebrate their 2nd anniversary recently. they discovered a lump in Josh's throat. They (and their doctor) believed it to be a brachial cleft cyst, because I'd had one just like it when I was a teenager and that is what it ended up being. He'd been training for an intense cycling race called Lotoja, and so it was decided they'd wait to operate until he did his race. After they got back from Mexico, Josh completed his race. He did great the first two legs, but by the end of the third one he was extremely sick and exhausted. However, after riding a bike for hundreds of miles, who could blame him? Or so they thought... until another lump showed up in his collarbone area.

The doctors immediately decided it was probably cancer and that they needed to operate and biopsy it to find out.

Fast forward a month and a half... and he is in a fight for his life. He has a very rare form of lymphoma. It is stage IV and has spread to his bones already. He's getting an aggressive form of chemo every other week. This last week was especially hard, as he's been violently ill with terrifyingly high fevers. They even did an appendectomy and it still didn't help. He's finally doing a bit better again, and will be able to continue his chemo this week. Once he finished chemo, he is going to need a bone marrow transplant and will spend at least a month in the hospital, most likely over the holidays.

Suddenly, the things I thought were hard? Not so much. I love these two so much. They are amazing people. They have shown nothing but courage, faith, love, and graciousness in the face of devastating and frightening blow after blow.

Can we do hard things? Yes, we can. Can he beat this cancer? YES HE CAN. Megan posted this video on FB last night, and it moved me to tears. Even though it's about women with cancer, it obviously can be switched around, as Megan is the one loving Josh through this.

I am now dedicating my race to Megan and Josh. No matter how hard it is, how my body aches, how tired I feel, I am going to push through it with a prayer of gratitude for a healthy body that can take me through all 13.1 miles.

Josh, I know you are going to beat this. We are all praying for you, cheering for you, here for you. Day or night. And I hope that all my followers will be willing to add their own faith and prayers to all those who are already rooting for you.

We're ALL going to love you and Megan through this... because we can all do hard things.

Can we go back?

2011-10-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

We went down to St. George for a quick family trip... it didn't last long enough. It was so beautiful. Can we go back??

Monday Motivation

2011-10-17T08:10:00.000-07:00

"Far away in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead. "

- Louisa May Alcott

Isn't that a lovely quote? I think so. There is so much beauty in this world. Yesterday, we took a drive to see the fall leaves; the colors are truly spectacular this year. So much beauty surrounding us, but how often do we stop and look?

Sometimes my aspirations do seem as impossible to reach as the sun, but I am determined to continue to look up, reach for them, enjoy the beauty of my life, and see where it leads.

Friday Four or Five

2011-10-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

1. Ben and Jerry's Fro-yo Phish Food is just as good as the ice-cream version IMO. And I am so tired that when I was posting about it on FB and Twitter last night, I didn't even spell it right. Whoops. So, in case any of you were wondering I was not eating fish food. I'll continue to just give that to Cougar (our beta fish [who happens to be blue, for all you local college football fans]) and Goldie (the goldfish) (names courtesy of SonA). But when it comes to PHISH food, I will gladly ingest as much of that as possible. Now, whether or not it was a good idea to eat half a pint of it the night before running 8 or 9 miles remains to be seen.

2. It's been a long week, as evidenced by #1. I'm not one to eat ice cream (or frozen yogurt as the case may be) straight out of the container. Ever. But I did last night.

3. I just had the opportunity to read a friend's manuscript (that is being published), and let me tell you guys -- it was AH-MAZ-ING. I can't wait for everyone to get to read her book. Love. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to tell anyone I read it, so that's why I'm being mysterious about who it was. But trust me, when the time comes, I will be shouting from the rooftops about this one.

4. You know how you write a book, and revise it, and revise it, and then revise it some more? And then you revise it with your agent, and then again, and again. And you think it's as clean and tight and awesome as it can be? And then you wait a year and go back to it... and find out there's always more you can do to make it better? Yeah. That.

How about you? What's on your mind today? Hope you all have a great weekend!

Monday Inspiration

2011-10-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

“There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle.”

- Albert Einstein

I personally believe in miracles. I have seen miracles in my life. I am always in awe at how sometimes my hardest trials have also reaped the greatest blessings.

I hope I can always look for the miracles in my life, and keep my vision up, bright, and full of gratitude even when it's hard. Even when I don't know the why's or why not's.

How about you?

Friday Four or Five

2011-10-07T10:29:00.000-07:00

1. We are NOT enjoying the cold weather over here. To go from 85 degrees to 35 and snowing in two days? Not cool Mother Nature. Well, actually it is literally cool--or cold, rather--but I think you know what I mean.

2. We are (almost) all sick now. SonB got croup first, and a week later (and many desperate attempts to keep Baby Girl away from him) she and I are both sick, too. All of my kids have had croup before, but never as young as her. It's a little nerve-wracking.

3. I'm supposed to be going on a long run tomorrow (8-9 miles) in preparation for my race in three weeks. That should be an adventure. Maybe the cold air and exercise will help me feel better...? Hey, just trying to think positive.

4. Speaking of the race, I got my costume for it (it's a Halloween Half, and most runners dress up) and I'm really excited about it! Now I just have to convince my sister to dress up too. I think everyone else we're running with us is planning on it. Maybe I'll even post a picture of us all dressed up. But only if I get one pre-race. I don't sweat pretty.

5. Random fact: I hate being scared. I don't do scary movies, or horror stories. I'm already scared of the dark as it is.

How about you? Do you like being scared or not? Any fun Halloween parties (or races) you're going to? Hope you all have a good weekend!

Friday Four or Five

2011-09-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

1. Baby Girl is three months old now. How did that happen? She's such a sweet, happy baby. And she's been sleeping through the night for about a month now. Huzzah!

2. For some reason I'm still exhausted almost all the time. Huh.

3. SHH has been gone all week in Florida, but he finally gets home tonight. I. Can't. Wait.

4. I got a new idea for a book yesterday, and I'm really excited about it... except I'm only on page three and I'm already questioning if it's any good, or if I started in the right place, or or or... Yeah. I think I need to turn off the internal editor. And grow some confidence (which I'll be honest and admit is lacking right now). Wish me luck.

What's on your mind today?

CLOCKWISE book launch, review, and contest!

2011-09-28T05:00:00.000-07:00

My sweet friend Elle Strauss is launching her first book CLOCKWISE this week! I am so excited for her. I had the opportunity to read it, and let me tell you -- you're in for a treat!

Isn't she gorgeous? What an amazing headshot.

Here's the twitter hook:
“A teen time traveler accidentally takes her secret crush back in time. Awkward.”
Intrigued yet?

From Amazon.com:

Boy watching with her best friend would be enough excitement for fifteen year old Casey Donavan. She doesn't even mind life at the bottom of the Cambridge High social ladder, if only she didn’t have this other much bigger problem. Unscheduled trips to the nineteenth century!

When Casey gets talked into going to the Fall Dance, the unthinkable happens--she accidentally takes Nate Mackenzie, the cutest boy in the school, back in time. Protocol pressures her to tell their 1860 hosts that he is her brother and when Casey finds she has a handsome, wealthy (and unwanted) suitor, something changes in Nate. Are those romantic sparks or is it just ‘brotherly’ protectiveness?

When they return to the present things go back to the way they were before: Casey at the bottom of the social totem pole and Nate practically the flag flying from the top. Except this time her heart is broken. Plus, her best friend is mad, her parents are split up, and her little brother gets escorted home by the police. The only thing that could make life worse is if, by some strange twist of fate, she took Nate back to the past again.

Which, of course, she does.

CLOCKWISE is launching electronically this week and it’s only 2.99 on Amazon , £2.17 on Amazon.co.uk! To celebrate, Elle Strauss is giving away five debut books by authors that you can meet on her blog tour which is happening now.

LOSING FAITH by Denise Jaden
THE CLEARING by Anne Riley
THE SECRET OF SPRUCE KNOLL by Heather McCorkle
PERILOUS by Tamara Hart Heiner
THE HATING GAME by Talli Roland

How to win? Sign up for Elle’s newsletter to enter. For extra entries just comment on any blog in the tour. The more blogs you visit and comment on the more chances you have to win.

Five books, five days, five winners! Hurry and enter!

CLOCKWISE is a really fun read. I love Casey's voice throughout the story, she's a fabulous narrator. I love how Elle weaved the normal teenage angst with the abnormal stress of time travel, and even historical events into the story. This is one worth reading, especially for only $2.99!

Congrats Elle on the release of CLOCKWISE! I wish you tons of success!

Thoughts about September 23rd

2011-09-23T14:05:00.000-07:00

Today is a special day. It is the day I married my sweetheart, my SHH (Super Hot Hubby, for any newer followers of the blog), eight years ago. So much has happened since then. So many highs, and so many lows. Trials, blessings, joy, and pain. Together, all the events have created our life as we know it so far. The beauty of new life that we've created together, the loss of life that we have mourned, the struggle to survive, the happiness of living, it's all there bundled up together.

Our wedding day was spectacular (as you can see from these pictures). It was a truly perfect day.

The best part of being married to my best friend is knowing that no matter what is thrown at us, that we have each other, that we're on this journey together. He supports me, believes in my dreams, urges me to keep going if I want to give up. And I hope I do the same for him.

It is also the day that our dear friends welcomed their beautiful twin girls into the world. Today they turn six. For them, this is a day of celebration for the lives they've welcomed into their family.

But this day is not just a day of joy. It is also a day that someone I know (not closely) lost her very young son in a drowning incident. Though I don't know her well, my heart still aches for her when I think of what September 23rd means in her life. Heartache instead of joy, pain instead of happiness.

And now it is also the day that marks the beginning of a fight. The fight my cousin's dear husband is waging against cancer. They are a gorgeous, young couple, full of life and love. They have only been married for two years. He competed in Lotoja (a local insanely difficult bike race) and found out he had cancer just a few days later. The lump in his neck was not a brachial cleft cyst like I had when I was 14 (that they thought he had as well). It is stage four Alk-negative anaplastic large cell lymphoma that has already spread throughout his neck, hip and possibly his bones. Today was his first chemo treatment. September 23rd for my cousin and her husband will be the day that marked the fight for his life -- the fight for their life together here on earth.

September 23rd is just another day on a calendar for many of you, I'm sure. But it means so many more things to me. A day of joy and remembrance, of pain, of endurance, of loss, and life, and those that have passed on and that which is still to come.

Most other days are just that to me, dates on a calendar. But to someone, somewhere it means much more than that. I guess I need to remember that more often if a stranger seems rude, or jubilant, sad or full of smiles.

So to my cousin and her husband: we love you. We know you can beat this. You are strong, and young, and full of faith and hope, and God will bless you, I know it.

To the mom who is mourning the loss of her baby three years ago (though I doubt she reads this blog): though I barely know you, our prayers are with you. I can't imagine your pain or how you stay so kind and sweet to everyone around you, from what I've seen the few times I've been near you since then. God will bless you as well, I know it.

And to my husband: Thank you. For being you. For loving me. For giving me the last eight years, and for all the years yet to come. I love you.

Monday Motivation

2011-09-19T15:16:00.000-07:00

"Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant. There is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks. "
- Johann Gottfried Von Herder

So tell me, how do you create the sparks to ignite your 'fuel?'

EVERNEATH blog tour!

2011-09-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

I am SO excited that I got to be a part of the EVERNEATH blog tour. I adore Brodi, she is so genuine, funny, talented, funny, nice... well, basically she rocks. She has worked so hard to get to this point, and I am so so happy for her. I first met her when she was requerying agents after deciding things weren't working out with her first agent. Talk about a hard decision. But obviously it was the right one, because now her book is almost here! If don't already follow her blog, you are missing out. So go rectify that RIGHT NOW. I'll wait.

....

Okay, done? Good. Now, on to her book.

First of all. OH MY HECK, am I the only one drooling over that cover? I just want to stare at it. Can't wait until it's on my shelf!

Here's the synopsis (from goodreads):

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever. She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists. Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen. As Nikki's time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she's forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's...

So, what did I think of it? Well, here's what I wrote on Goodreads (I gave it 5 stars btw):

"I don't give stars anymore, but I absolutely had to on this one because HOLY CRIMINY it deserved it! BRODI!! I LOVED it. If this isn't on your TBR list yet, you'd better add it. Now. Couldn't put it down (which is saying a lot with a 3 week old). Dark, beautiful, hopeful, devastating, fabulous, refreshing and new. I won't say more so you can experience it for yourself in January. Way to go, Bro."

Can you get any higher of a recommendation than the fact that I had a 3 week old baby, and I stayed up until 2 am trying to finish it?? Yeah, I don't think so either. I have a total book-crush on Jack. My only complaint is that I have to wait so long to read the sequel! :)

Be sure to check back to Brodi's blog for more links as the blog tour continues, and mark your calendars for January 3rd when you can get your hot little hands on this gem.

Monday Inspiration

2011-09-12T08:37:00.000-07:00

Here's a great quote to start off this new week:

"The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack in will." - Vince Lombardi

I have oodles of will, so I should be good to go, right? How about you?

Looking for joy along the path

2011-09-07T09:54:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but there are times when I'm so focused on my goals (aka the "end results"), that I lose sight of the joy in where I'm at right now. I've made a conscious effort to find more happiness in the journey in the last few months, and it has made a big difference. I don't beat myself up as much for not getting everything done as fast as possible. I take more time to breath, to see, to listen, to feel.

As I was running with my mom and sister last weekend (6 miles, woot woot!), we came upon this beautiful sight. It was a perfect moment--a nice cool breeze, we were all feeling really good, the sun was just coming up... it was lovely. I dare say it was the best run I've ever had to this point.

Isn't the fog weaving through the river bottoms just beautiful? We thought so, too.

But not all runs are this wonderful. My sister and I ran on the same path last night and nearly every step was a struggle. She had a blister that was bleeding, I was exhausted, but we pushed through and did our 4 miles. And we were still able to find the joy in the run, even if it was harder than the previous time.

Life is like that - sometimes it's easy to see the beauty and joy in our path, other times it takes a lot more effort. With running, with trying to get published, with being a mom, with all aspects of my life, this is true.

How about you, do you find it easy or hard to find joy in your journey?

And... DONE!

2011-08-29T07:43:00.000-07:00

Whoa. It's been an intense couple of weeks. SHH started traveling for work again (rather suddenly), so I had to start flying solo with all three kids day and night before I knew it. I had this major revision I needed to get done for my agent, I had to try and figure out how to go running without SHH there to help with the kids (his mom came over and watched them so I could go once), and yeah. Just busy, busy, busy.

I didn't get much sleep, but I did get my revision done last Thursday. YAY! That was such a big relief and weight off my chest. Of course, now I'm sick, so I may be wearing myself out a little bit, but oh well. What can you do?

That's the thing, when you want something bad enough, you make sacrifices. You endure, and fight, and keep going. Whether it be running a hard race, writing your book (or revising it as the case may be), or any other goal you have. Life doesn't get any easier, nor does time just magically appear so you can "finally get around" to that thing you've been wanting to do. For me right now, I'm trying to keep balance in my life. I am cherishing my baby girl and my boys as much as possible, because I don't want to have any regrets when they get older. So that means sacrificing sleep to pursue my goals - staying up late to write and getting up early to run (when SHH is here anyway). Normally I would keep working on a new book or some other writing project after finishing one project, but this time, I think I might take a break for a week and enjoy an extra couple hours of sleep--or time cuddling Baby Girl. :)

How about you, what do you sacrifice to meet your goals? What have you been doing these last couple of weeks?

Summer is drawing to a close...

2011-08-11T08:38:00.000-07:00

If you wonder where I've been, here's a snapshot...

Cherishing my time with this little one. (Or trying to anyway, in between the hectic life of taking care of two young boys and my house and the revision I'm trying to work on for my agent and the half marathon I'm training for [which I signed up for in October in an apparent moment if insanity, but I'm excited to accomplish something that hard], and yeah. Oh, and SHH just found out he's going to be traveling for work again a whole bunch. Yikes. Busy much? Oh my. So if I'm still sporadic with blogging for a while, you'll know why. I am reading your blogs as much as I can, I just don't have any extra time to comment very often, so I apologize for that. But I honestly don't know how I'm going to do it all and still be the kind of mom I want to be. I'm just taking it one day at a time.

However I did sneak out for Kiersten White's signing for SUPERNATURALLY--another NY Times Bestseller! Woohoo! Congrats Kiersten, I'm so happy for you.

So what are you doing these last few weeks of summer?

Not quite back yet...

2011-07-20T13:26:00.000-07:00

Yeah, still in survival mode over here a bit. I actually showered, got dressed, AND had make up on before 10 am today -- with all three kids here and no help. That's probably a pathetic thing to get excited about, but for me, it was a victorious moment.

As for my writing? Um, pretty much nonexistant right now. But hey, she's only 3 weeks old as of yesterday, and most people take off 6 weeks from their jobs right? So the fact that I'm getting anything done is putting me ahead of the game. Or at least that's what I'm going to tell myself.

In the meantime, I have friends with great news and fun stuff happening:

Natalie Whipple got a book deal!!! WOOHOO!!! I'm so so SO happy for her. She has worked harder than you can imagine for this moment to happen. If you haven't already, make sure to go wish her well!

My friend Stacey's book blog My Pile of Books is celebrating its blogiversary, and she's going to be doing some great giveaways, so make sure and check it out!

There's more, but baby girl just started crying, so my time is up. :)

She's here!

2011-07-08T10:28:00.000-07:00

Wanna know why my belly got this huge?

(38 weeks, whoa BABY!)

Well, here she is!

Our beautiful daughter!

9 lbs 7 oz

22 inches

We spent a lot of time in the nursery with her because she had some complications. Luckily she was doing well enough to come home with us on time.

Curly hair like her Mama ;)

SonA and SonB both adore her.

My beautiful little firecracker.

So that's why I'll be MIA for a while. :-) Hope you are all doing great. Keep me posted on the rest of the world...

One day more

2011-06-27T06:00:00.000-07:00

Only one more day until we meet our little girl! Because of my low blood pressure issues, I am being induced tomorrow morning (if she doesn't decide to surprise us in the next few hours, that is). I. Can't. Wait.

Yes, I know this means I am going to be having sleepless nights. But at least they'll be sleepless because I'm taking care of my baby instead of being woken up by acid reflux, or my heart racing because my BP is dropping again.

Yes, I know it means taking care of three kids, which is going to be an adjustment. But at least I will be able to walk around, and run and jump and play and drive a car and do anything I want to instead of being stuck in bed all day and night.

Yes, I know it means my writing time will become even harder to find. But at least I know I've made it work in the past with a newborn and I know I can and will make it work again.

I am beyond thrilled to NOT be pregnant, to NOT be on bed rest, and to hold my baby girl in my arms. Wish us luck!

What are your big plans this week?

(and p.s. anyone know how to make blogger give me back my followers widget thingy? It's been missing for a couple of weeks now...)

Random: it's the best I can do right now

2011-06-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

Random thoughts for your general amusement and entertainment, courtesy of being stuck laying on my left side almost 24/7 for days and days and days...

When you can't do anything except lay there, you'd think you wouldn't get as hungry anymore or as often as when you were very active. You'd be wrong.

Also, you have a lot of time to contemplate what exactly you are craving and how badly you want (need) it right then. With no way of accomplishing the goal of getting it. Unless a very nice someone (generally SHH) acquiesces and gets it for you.

I can't wait to meet my baby girl!!

Running out of books that you haven't read yet when you can't go to the store or library for more = bad.

Did you know you can spend hours contemplating the merits and downfalls (literally) of taking a shower? "I'd really like to take a shower, but if I do, I might pass out. That would be bad. Not to mention embarrassing, who wants to be found drenched and naked, unconscious in their shower? But on the bright side, I haven't passed out yet, so I'd probably be okay. And then I'd be clean. Which is nice." I have scintillating conversations like these with myself all the time these days. It's what happens when you have no one else to talk to the majority of the time.

I keep daydreaming about being able to use my new double jogging stroller. Of course, by the time I can use it, it'll probably FINALLY be super hot. Hence making it miserable to try and go for walks or runs. But dream of it I still do. Going from working out an hour a day most days, and running crazy taking care of my kids, family, work, etc. to being completely sedentary 24/7 is not the easiest thing for me.

The angle of your open blinds really makes a difference on how hot your bedroom gets throughout the day. Also, it is not a good idea to open your window for fresh air when there is no screen on it, and your window is level with the ground. Glancing up to see a ginormous red spider running across the wall towards you does not equate with me continuing to lay on my side.

I can't wait to meet my baby girl!!

Yep, these and other exciting thoughts brought to you by The Days of Sara's Bedrest. Stay tuned for another gripping episode... whenever she decides she's bored enough to write another post like this. Unless the series gets cancelled (aka she has her baby), in which case we can all rejoice.

Friday Five: Bedrest edition

2011-06-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

Here's my limited observations and thoughts from a week of being stuck in bed:

1. Thank heavens for good books to distract me. This week was brought to you by Holly Black (RED GLOVE), Simone Elkeles (PERFECT CHEMISTRY), and I'm currently reading LOCK and KEY by Sarah Dessen.

2. Trying to work on revision notes while lying on your left side is really hard.

3. Typing while lying on your left side is really hard. Hence, I've been reading everyone's blogs, but unfortunately not always commenting if I've already been typing a lot on my mss that day.

4. Never, ever eat an entire Iceberg shake by yourself. I don't think I've consumed that much ice cream in the last two years combined. It was amazing, but yikes. I'm not feeling so good right now...

5. I am so grateful to my family and friends who have stepped in (and up) to help me during this time: taking care of my kids, cleaning, cooking, taking my BP, you name it. I can't thank you all enough. It's hard feeling like such a burden when I'm used to just pushing through and doing it all myself. Thank you, thank you.

So, tell me, how was your week? Any fun plans for the weekend? I'm hoping to have a baby, but we'll see how well that works out. ;)

Elana Johnson's signing!

2011-06-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

I was lucky enough to attend the book launch/signing for Elana Johnson's POSSESSION last week at The King's English in Salt Lake City. Since I ended up in the ER the next day, and on bedrest since then (see last post), the timing couldn't have been more perfect.

Elana and me before her speech

I can't believe the crowd that was there--it was astounding! But then again, I shouldn't be surprised, since she is so amazing, and so well loved. It was a triumphant wonderful night for her, and I couldn't be happier for my friend!

Me and Natalie Whipple

I also got to see so many author friends, like Natalie It was such a fun night. :)

Stacey (MyPileofBooks) and me

Congrats again Elana! Wishing you tons of success in the months and years to come. :)

Friday... gratitude and I had no clue

2011-06-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

So, yesterday was an, um, interesting day.

The "I had no clue" part: that you can have a blood pressure of 50/26 and still be alive. Did you know that? I even worked in the medical field and so does my mom, and she didn't really think you could be either.

The gratitude part: I am so grateful that I and my baby girl are both alive and healthy right now.

I spent the day in the ER because I was having chest pain yesterday morning. My doctor told me to go in to make sure it wasn't a blood clot. After quite a few tests, they found out there was no clot. But it was an absolute miracle that I was in the hospital at that time, because I ended up losing consciousness about midday and my blood pressure dropped to the aforementioned 50/27.

I started feeling weird, then it kept progressing until I felt like something was really wrong. Lightheaded, my limbs all felt heavy and shaky, I was out of breath, intense hot flashes (but was cold to the touch), etc. At the worst point, when my vision was going black and I could barely breathe, I heard my ER dr yell, "We're going to need help in here!" and then I don't remember much.

Another thing you don't want to see/hear (which I didn't, but SHH did, since I wasn't coherent) is one of the many doctors in the room pointing at the monitor above me and saying, "Is that real?" (Asking about the blood pressure reading.)

The great news is that I did revive, the baby was fine during the whole episode (her heart rate dropped a little bit but nothing significant), and I am back home on bed rest for now--on my left side. The only thing they could guess had happened is that reclining on my back or my right side (the two positions I was in before it happened) put the baby on my vena cava and cut off my blood return.

So here's my tie in to writing: Sometimes things happen in our books that we don't anticipate or want. A plot hole opens up it's gaping jaws. A character falls flat. The stack of cards we assemble collapse. We get frustrated, we get anxious, we have to figure out what went wrong and try to fix it. But sometimes, these problems end up being a blessing in disguise. Maybe they unmask a deeper problem with our manuscript that, once fixed, truly makes our story shine.

Did that tie in work? Sort of? Well, anyway, whether it did or not, I am glad to be okay. Let's hope I stay that way. Today was scary enough to last me a long time. I'm ready for a nice, smooth labor sometime in the next 2-3 weeks. Sounds good? I think so!

Why am I sharing this? Well, to get sympathy of course! No, just kidding. Actually, it's to let you all know that I may be more sporadic with my blogging until the baby gets here (when I'll be taking a break for a couple weeks). Between the bedrest while taking care of two young boys, trying to finish the revision I'm working on for my agent before the baby comes, and everything else, I'm a little overwhelmed. Also, it's much more difficult to type when you're forced to lay on your left side all the time than you might think. I'll do my best to keep up my schedule, but if I miss a time or two, I hope you'll understand.

So, did you all have a great week? I hope so. Happy weekend to everyone! I'll be wishing us all nice, normal blood pressures! ;)

Possession!

2011-06-08T06:00:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you already know and adore Elana Johnson. She's everywhere--she does so much for so many people. Her blog=amazing. Her accomplishments (querytracker, writeoncon, etc.)= astounding. And her book POSSESSION is finally here! WOOHOO!

I am so excited for you Elana, and just want to take the time to say

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

You rock and deserve all the good things coming your way.

Control or be controlled? That's the question! To find out, go out and get your copy today! I can't wait for the launch party tonight.

Vampires vs. Wizards

2011-06-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

So, tell me, which one are you more excited about?

OR

I'm excited for both, but I know which one I'm dying to see! To give you a hint... it's the one that comes out right after I'm having a baby so I can't go to the midnight show. I'm way bummed about that. Hopefully she's a good baby so we can sneak her in to see it on opening weekend or something! I can't wait!

What about you?

Friday Five

2011-06-03T06:00:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm back! Did you miss me? I missed keeping up with all of you. What happened while I was on my vacation? Fill me in! Here's a few things on my mind today:

1. This is a shot I took of my boys on Memorial Day at Manhattan Beach.

I want to go back. Really bad.

2. Also, I really love my boys. I am one lucky girl.

3. I have 4 weeks left at most until my little girl makes her big debut. I'm hoping it'll be closer to two weeks, but we'll see. Both of my boys came early, so there is a chance...

4. I finished DIVERGENT today and holy wow. SO good people. Go. Buy it. Read it. Call me so we can discuss.

5. I just realized I'm having a baby in less than a month. I'd better hurry and get some major writing time in before she comes, because I have a feeling it'll be slim pickin's for a few weeks at least. You never know though, those midnight feedings... maybe I can hold her in one arm and try to type with one hand? Ha ha.

What's on your mind today? Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Friday... time for a getaway!

2011-05-27T08:00:00.000-07:00

Instead of a friday five, I'm just going to do a short post today. I'm crazy busy getting ready to go on a trip. By the time you read this, I'll be on the road to Cali for a Memorial Day getaway with my family before baby girl arrives. Woohoo!

Yes, I am super pregnant, and yes, that is a LOOONG drive for us. But I will get through it so that I can enjoy the feel of sand between my toes, the sound of the ocean crashing on the shore, the cry of seagulls overhead... Ah... I can't wait! We are staying in a condo right on the beach. My kids are so excited, SonB (who is 2) has been saying, "Mommy, I'm so essited [excited] to go to California! I'm essited to take my shovel and bucket to the BEACH!" all week.

We'll be gone until Wednesday, so until then, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend (for those in the U.S.), and a great start to your week. Catch you on the flip side!

Um... whoops?

2011-05-25T19:04:00.000-07:00

So, apparently it's Wednesday. And I didn't do a post on time. Or even close to on time. Um, yeah. I have no excuse. Just... whoops. #sarafail

But probably everyone is at BEA anyway, and didn't notice my lack of posting, right? Man I wish I were at BEA. Someday I hope. Did anyone nab any awesome ARCs--particularly ones you would be willing to share with me? *wink, nudge, cough*

I did just buy Veronica Roth's DIVERGENT and can't wait to read it -- all I keep hearing is how amazing it is. I'm saving it for the holiday weekend.

What are your plans for the weekend?

A little J.K. Rowling to start the week

2011-05-23T07:23:00.000-07:00

As most of my older followers know, I LOVE Harry Potter. I think J.K. Rowling is a genius. One thing that a lot of people overlook, are the little pearls of wisdom she sprinkled throughout her books. Here's one to start off the week:

"It is our choices... that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." -- J.K. Rowling

Isn't that true? I know extremely talented people who just don't have the drive or dedication to make something of themselves; whereas I also I know people who maybe don't have as much natural talent who bust their butts and become incredible at what they're pursuing.

I know people who had amazing potential for good, but made choices that took them down paths of greed and selfishness and destroyed their potential. I also know people who were raised in enviroments where everything was against them, and they rose above it all and became amazing people who touch more lives for good than they could ever realize.

To put a little spin on the quote, it is our choices who MAKE us who we are.

What do you think?

Friday Five: the late edition

2011-05-20T11:05:00.000-07:00

1. As you may have noticed, this post is later than normal. Sorry about that. I don't really have an excuse except for being super busy. And also tired. And really, really pregnant. And busy.

2. As I mentioned in my last post, it's been raining here. A lot. So much that I'm beginning to wonder if we somehow got transported to the Northwest peninsula. If I were into sparkly vampires, my hopes would be getting higher for a sighting any minute now.

3. Because of that rain, my plans to take my kids to the zoo today (since SonA was out of school) got nixed. Bummer. Now I'm trying to figure out how to entertain him inside, at home, yet again. Maybe I should convince him that cutting and gluing preschool art projects is super fun; that way he can help me get my work done for my job and I'll have more time to write tonight. A 6-year-old's work would totally look good enough, right? I'm totally kidding, but it's a nice thought!

4. Pools are supposed to open next weekend, but I'm thinking it might not happen. High 40s and rain isn't conducive to sitting out by the pool. There go my plans to take the kids and let them swim everyday until I have this baby. I guess the bright side to that is the fact that no one will have to see me in a swimsuit while I'm this pregnant any time soon...

5. Writing is really therapeutic for me sometimes. I've been in a funk this week, most likely because of the icky weather. Confession time: I have barely written this week. *blushes* I know, I know! I always say to write every day and I usually do. I promise to rectify that immediately. Well, not immediately because I have to go make lunch for my boys, and clean up, and yeah. But you know, soon. Like tonight. When they're in bed.

What's on your mind this Friday? Hope you all have a great weekend!

Rain, rain go away

2011-05-18T07:27:00.000-07:00

Does the weather affect your mood? I actually usually enjoy a rainy, stormy day. But we have had way too few sunny, warm days this year. I want the sun.

However, this kind of weather is conducive to writing for me. I love to curl up with my laptop, some beautiful music, and write to the sound of the rain pounding on my windows.

How about you? Do you have weather you prefer when you're writing, or do you not care?

Blogger Lameness

2011-05-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

The weirdest thing happened last week--Blogger stopped working! I couldn't believe it. Wait, you already knew that? Oh. Right.

Yeah, that was very strange and frustrating. But it seems to be up and working again, so hurray. *half-heartedly tosses confetti*

The saddest part is that you all had to miss out on my Friday Five because of it. I know, many tears were shed. I'm very sorry about the loss you all must have suffered. Ha ha. Ha.

So, back to business as usual now.

Let's get a little quotage to start the week, shall we? Here's a fun one:

“Your imagination is your preview of life’s coming attractions.” ~ Albert Einstein

I have a pretty active imagination, which can be good or bad, depending on the situation. Being scared of the dark because I am picturing all sorts of horrible things happening=bad imagination. Coming up with a new book idea that sucks me right into an awesome new world of characters=good imagination.

What about you? Where does your imagination take you?

Writing with distractions

2011-05-11T07:02:00.000-07:00

As a mom of two young boys and a baby on the way, with a part time job, and my other "jobs" (housekeeper, chef, laundress, etc.), life is busy. I often get asked how I make time for writing. The way I get asked this varies from, "Wow, how do you fit writing in?" to "Boy, I wish I had time to write. That must be so nice." Ha ha. Ha. Cue my attempt to not appear annoyed. I have to make time for writing by sacrificing other stuff--TV, movies, sometimes the organization of my house, sleep... you know. The usual. I've posted about this before. I've also gotten good at multitasking. Thinking about plot stuff or my latest revision notes while making dinner or doing the dishes. Writing on my laptop while the kids play. Stuff like that.

Many of you are in the same boat, trying to write with young families, and some of you aren't.

Everyone is busy though, in their own ways. Everyone has distractions. Yours might not be miniature humans who require constant supervision, entertainment, feeding, cleaning, and care. But everyone has something (or many things) that could keep them from finding the time to write.

What are your distractions? And how do you make time to write?

Overcoming Writer's Block

2011-05-09T06:23:00.000-07:00

Last week I talked a little bit about writing every day, and said I had some tricks for overcoming writer's block. I know everyone has their own method for writing, but here's a couple things I try if the words just won't come:

1. MUSIC. This is a big one for me. I almost always listen to music while I write, whether I'm blocked or not. This doesn't work for everyone, but for me, it's a biggie. Finding the right type of "mood" music for the part I'm writing can help intensify the emotions in that particular scene, and help the words flow easier. If I'm having a hard time writing, a lot of times I will listen to instrumental, usually from movie soundtracks, so that the words of the songs don't distract me.

2. Go back a few pages. I usually do this anyway as well, and I think by going back and reading over the last few pages I wrote, I not only write a cleaner first draft (because I'll catch mistakes as I go), it also helps me get back into my story and remember the details of where I was going. This way, when I hit that blank page, my mind is already flowing with the story, and I can keep writing.

3. Just start typing. Even if it totally sucks, I find that just by forcing myself to type something, ANYTHING, it makes the words start to flow. It might take a couple paragraphs before the words start coming faster, or it might take a couple of pages. Are there nights I give up if I've written two pages and it's taken me two hours? Yes. But at least I wrote something. And more often than not, when I force myself to write, I overcome the block and end up doing some of my best and fastest work.

When I push through, is everything I write amazing? No. Do I end up deleting a bunch of it? Sometimes. But more often than not, I'll go to bed thinking, "that was such a waste, everything I just wrote totally sucked." Then when I go back to it the next day, I'm often surprised to find that it's actually much better than I thought.

These are just a few ideas I use. What about you? What do you do to overcome writer's block? Because the honest truth is, once you have an editor and a deadline (which is what we all want, right?) you can't say, "Hey, sorry I'm only half-way done, but I've just been struggling with writer's block..." Yeah. Not so much. Make it a habit now to push on through, and you'll be very glad later!

Friday Five

2011-05-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

1. It was 70 degrees today. 70! There was much rejoicing throughout the land. I spent the afternoon weeding and planting flowers for my mom (to surprise her for Mother's Day) with my boys and my sisters. It was fabulous. I adore my mom, she is just completely made of awesome. She's always been one of my best friends. Love ya! Happy Mother's Day Mom!

2. Speaking of my boys, SonA's birthday is this weekend. He was actually born on Mother's Day (my first real Mother's Day!), and his birthday landed on it again this year. We will be celebrating on Saturday since Sunday will be so packed, and he can't wait! I can't believe how old he's getting. Time just seems to fly when it comes to how quickly my kids are growing up. Except when my two-year-old is throwing tantrums. Then, it could stand to go by just a tad faster. Okay, not really. But sheesh! ;)

3. Melanoma sucks. Why can't our society still think pale is pretty? No, we have to all wish we were tan (me included), even though I've already had a cancer scare on my back. I still long for golden skin. Lame, right? Ugh.

4. Also, why can't plump still be in vogue? Then we could all slather on the sunscreen, not get skin cancer, eat all the cake and ice cream and cookies we want, and die of diabetes instead.

5. Hmmm, I haven't seemed to come up with any thoughts on writing this week. So, here you go. I wish my laptop screen worked better outside. Because it's hard to see what I'm typing when I'm sitting out, enjoying the sun (with my sunscreen on of course), letting my boys play. It's a true dilemma.

So, wow, there's some random thoughts for you to round out this week. What are your thoughts today? Any fun plans for Mother's Day?

Writing: Career or hobby?

2011-05-04T07:26:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to go to dinner with some great writing friends last night, including the awesome and hilarious Janette Rallison. We all met at the WIFYR conference a few years ago. I love getting together with other authors/aspiring authors and "talk shop" (plus a lot of other things--you seriously never know what's going to get brought up whenever this group gets together) (and I can't tell you upon pains of death and humiliation to all involved) (but one part may have involved Erin standing up to try and show us her new jeans and her chair falling over and hitting the older gentleman sitting behind her, and us trying to say she has turretts [because of an earlier incident in the night] while laughing hysterically, and him looking really angry at us, just as a mild example).

Left to right: Carla, Janette's daughter who doesn't want her name on the internet, Erin, Melony

Stacey, Me, Janette

One thing that Erin (the dark-haired beauty in the middle of the first picture, also the culprit of attacking innocent old men with her chair) and I were talking about at one point was how often to write. She was asking me if I write every day, and what if I'm having a day where I'm blocked and everything that's coming out is crap?

I told her I do write every day, even if I can only get 500 words out. "Even if what you write is so bad, you just have to delete it all the next day?" Yes, even then. It creates a habit, it helps train your mind, and get you into the necessary schedule of writing every day. If you want to be published, you will have to be able to do that. You can't take month long breaks because you're "blocked" if you want to be published. You will have deadlines that can't be missed, and you have to push through the block and keep going no matter what. There are tricks I use to help me get through writer's block, and maybe I'll talk about that in another post.

I guess it comes down to whether writing is a hobby for you, or if you want it to be your career. If it's just a hobby, then by all means, write when the muse strikes. If you want it to be a career, you have to treat it like a career NOW. Before you even have an agent, let alone a publishing deal? Yes. I believe that if you want something to happen, you have to act like it already has--create the habit and the mentality now. Act as if you already have an agent and an editor. It will just make it that much easier when it really does happen.

What do you think? Do you write every day? How do you get through writer's block?

Recap

2011-05-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Isn't it interesting how you wait for something for so long, and then when it comes, it's over before you know it?

That's how the A.F. Writer's conference was for me. I actually enjoy public speaking (gasp! I know, I'm weird), so the ten minute speech wasn't something I was too worried about. But I was nervous for all the classes I was supposed to teach. Particularly because I was team teaching them with one or two other authors (except for one that I was alone for). I'd never met the other authors before, so I had no idea what to expect. Luckily, they were all lovely, and the classes were really fun to teach. Everyone there was so nice and had some great questions for us to answer. It was fun to meet new people and to get to interact with other authors and aspiring authors.

I guess I learned a good lesson. Most of the time, the things we are nervous about end up being no big deal--and in fact, oftentimes, they end up being a great time. I'm glad I got to participate, and thank everyone who was so kind to me and everyone else involved.

How was your weekend? Can you believe it's May? The weather is forecasted to FINALLY be warmer this week. Hurray!

Friday Five in which I am nervous

2011-04-29T06:00:00.000-07:00

1. So, I may have mentioned that I'm speaking/teaching at a writer's conference in AF a couple times. But what I may not have told you is that although I am excited, I am also really nervous. So if any of you are going to it, first of all, pretend like I look really small and petite, instead of large with child and extremely uncomfortable. And secondly, if I totally screw up, let's just pretend like I didn't, okay? Okay.

2. I know this is revealing my inner nerdness, but I am SO excited for HP7 pt. 2. We usually go to the midnight show (my friend does a big party beforehand), but this year I won't get to because I'll have a newborn. I just hope I can see it as close to the release date as possible.

3. On a serious note, my heart goes out to all those affected by the tornadoes in the south. I used to want to be a "tornado chaser" when I was in elementary school (and even beyond that), because I've always been fascinated by them. But to see this kind of destruction and death is so horrible. I just hope the storms will stop. It makes me feel guilty for complaining about the never ending snowstorms here.

4. On a less serious note, I've heard rumors about some sort of big wedding that's going on? That's taking up more news coverage than the tornadoes? Yeah, I'm excited about it, but not THAT much. I used to have a semi-crush on Prince Wills. Probably because of the first part of that name: "Prince." Who didn't dream of becoming a princess at some point? And he wasn't too bad on the eyes. I remember when he and Kate broke up (gasp! shock!), but now here they are. Getting married. *brushes a tear from my eye* *not really* But yay for them. :) *edit: I write my posts the night before, so I hadn't seen Kate yet when I wrote this. I must now admit to being totally sucked into to the fairytale. She looked absolutely stunning. A true Princess. Wow.

5. Did I mention that I'm nervous for tomorrow?

So what's on your mind today? Hope you all have a great weekend!

What makes you love YA?

2011-04-27T06:00:00.000-07:00

The way the YA genre has exploded in recent years has been quite the phenomenon. Luckily for me, it's what I've always written (before I knew what "YA" even was). Well, other than that one unfortunate attempt at writing an adult fiction novel. With the knowledge I have now, I know I could go back and make it a much better book. Maybe someday. But my passion is YA, and for now, I'm sticking with it.

In any genre, there will be books that don't live up to your hopes, and others that far exceed them. In my opinion, the best books are the ones that you are dying to finish so you can find out what happens, and yet simultaneously wish could go on forever because you love it so much. One of the most interesting (and sometimes frustrating) aspects of the publishing industry is that different people can and do have completely different reactions to the same book.

What I'm interested in hearing today is why YOU love YA? (Assuming that you do...) What makes YA something you want to write or read? What sets YA apart from other genres in your opinion?

Quote for the Week

2011-04-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

"In the hopes of reaching the moon men fail to see the flowers that blossom at their feet."

- Albert Schweitzer

So true, don't you think? What flowers are you missing out on noticing in your pursuit of the moon?

I know I have days where I go to bed wishing I'd spent my day differently--that I had tried to enjoy the moment I'm in more, rather than dreaming/wishing/longing for future hopes and events.

But I also have days where I know I lived it to the fullest, where I took the time to cherish my boys' smiles, their kisses, the things they say and do. When I paused to watch the sun rise or set. When I took pride in my writing, whether I was able to write 5,000 words, or only 500. When I've kissed my husband like I meant it, and basked in the fact that he loves me for me. When I gave thanks that he understands and supports and encourages me. That I expressed my deep gratitude for friends who shock me with their generosity and kindness, for family who are everything, and other blessings in my life.

Are there dreams I long for that haven't come true yet? Yes. Have there been really hard disappointments and hurdles I've had to overcome (and continue to try to overcome), both personally and in my pursuit of publication? Absolutely. But there are also flowers all around. Have you noticed them recently?

Friday Five

2011-04-22T07:29:00.000-07:00

I knew you guys were smart! All the advice you've shared this week has been absolutely perfect. There's a lot of wisdom in what you all wrote. So, once more, thank you very much!

Here's what's on my mind today:

1. This week SonA has had school off for spring break. I had so many fun activities planned. And then the forecast changed from mid-sixties and sunny back to our norm for the year. Freezing cold snowing/raining/doom. We've managed to still find some fun stuff to do, but overall, this has not been a week of spring break win, that's for sure.

2. Last night we celebrated SHH's birthday a few days early (since his birthday is actually on Easter Sunday this year, which has never happened before since I've known him). I surprised him with a couple's massage and then we used his free birthday meal at Benihana for dinner. Ahhh, what an awesome night. We both could have slept until noon today after the relaxation and delicious food overload. Instead, that cute alarm clock (otherwise known as SonB) was up at 7 am on the dot like usual, telling us all to wake up and get him out of bed. Oh well. ;)

3. I'm having a minor complication with my pregnancy (nothing that will cause the baby any harm, just discomfort and pain for me), that requires me to lay down on my side with my legs as elevated as I can get them multiple times a day. Or that's what I'm supposed to do anyway. Usually I find the time to do that about twice a day if I'm lucky. I thought it would be a great chance to catch up on my TBR list, but instead it turns out whenever I finally do lay down is exactly when my kids suddenly need me. Hmmm, interesting how that works.

4. Isn't it intriguing how some days when you're writing the words just seem to flow, and other days.... not so much. Yeah, I'm glad I'm not alone. Right?

5. Dessert is yummy. With this pregnancy I can't seem to feel full until I've had some sugary goodness. Usually I'm good about resisting sweet libations, but it's been a bit harder this time. Okay, a LOT harder. This girl must have a serious sweet tooth.

So, what's on yor mind this Friday? Any fun plans for the holiday weekend?

Taking Feedback

2011-04-20T08:55:00.000-07:00

Wow, I knew you guys were good! Thanks for all the advice you shared on Monday. Seriously, you all rock.

So here's the question for today:

What's one thing to remember or do when taking feedback?

I'm also teaching a class on taking feedback. I'm excited for this one, because I've had to learn a lot over the years about this very subject. Feedback can be a tricky thing. You have to remember that someone took the time to read and critique your book for you. They cared enough to spend hours if not days working on helping you--whether you think every edit they gave is golden, or whether you completely disagreed with all of it, or fell somewhere in the middle.

It's easy to get offended when someone tries to tell you about something that didn't work in your book. But to be successful as a writer, you have to not only get past the urge to get offended, you have to be able and willing to listen, to contemplate it, and to make appropriate changes based on the feedback you get. It's a process that doesn't end with CPs. Your agent, and your editor will both do the same thing. It's also important as a CP to understand how the author you're working with assimilates the feedback. Everyone has a different way of understanding and absorbing edits, and you can't get offended by how someone takes the critiques you offered.

So tell me, what are your tricks and tips for taking feedback? I'm excited to share some of mine at this conference, but I know you probably have some great ones I haven't thought of. Thanks again for sharing!

Happy Wednesday!

Help please!

2011-04-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday everyone!

As some of you may be aware, I am speaking and teaching at a local writer's conference in a couple of weeks. I'm excited but nervous about this opportunity. Mostly because I want to do a really good job. I want to be interesting, and funny, and entertaining, but also informative and helpful and yeah, the list goes on. That's not too much to expect from myself, right? Heh, heh. Um...

This is where you come in. I have quite a range of topics to teach during the day, and I already have a good idea of how I'm going to approach them. However, I think it would be interesting and informative to hear what some of your thoughts are. I'm going to be asking for your help or feedback on a few things to help me put together the absolute best presentations possible. My hope is that by taking what I've already thought up, and adding to it with your insights, I will be able to accomplish my previously mentioned goals. Cause let's face it, chances are ya'll are way smarter than me anyway. ;)

So first up: blogging. I am supposed to teach two different classes on blogging, one on how to gain more followers and one on making your blog a success. There are many of you who have waaaay more followers than me, and are definitely much more successful bloggers than I am, so for today here are my questions: (you can pick one of the three, or answer all three if you want)

What is the #1 best piece of advice you could give someone on how to make their blog a success/or to gain more followers?

What is something about my blog that you think makes it "successful" or made you want to become a follower?

What is something a blogger SHOULDN'T do if they want to accomplish either goal?

Thank you for your help! Hopefully I can do a good job on the 30th. *bites nails* *except not really, because I'm not actually a nail biter, but you know, figuratively speaking*

The funny thing about being asked to teach this class is that I don't think of my blog as a "success." Not in the way that I'd imagine a class would expect their teacher's blog to be. I don't have 1,000+ followers, or 50 comments on each post. But then I thought about it, and I realized that for me it is a success. When I get comments telling me how much a certain post meant to someone, or I meet a new friend through my blog, or someone tells me they are going to bookmark my post because it was so helpful to them... that is a great success in my book. And a year ago, I wouldn't have dreamed of having 300 hundred people following my blog, let alone 1,000. So, no. I don't have as "big" of a blog as quite a few, but I guess for me, it IS a little bit of a success after all. :)

Friday Five

2011-04-15T06:18:00.000-07:00

1. My kids have become better than an alarm clock. They both get up at 7 am every day. SonA helps SonB get out of his crib, and then they come in our room. It's a pretty cute wakeup call... but I do wish there was some way to get them to sleep in, at least on Saturday. Oh well!

2. There are certain books that maybe aren't the best to read when you're pregnant, emotional, and already having really weird dreams every night. Though it was really good, all the zombies and death and hopelessness and zombies was a little much for me right now. Lesson learned. Wait to read Carrie Ryan's books until I'm NOT pregnant. And when I'm not going to cry at the part where Catcher talks about the little boy he couldn't save...

3. Isn't it amazing how a book can completely change your mood? I knew I needed something to read that was a little bit... um, less horrorifying after the way The Dark and Hollow Places affected me. I picked up Hex Hall, and so far it was just what I needed. A snarky, fun protag and no zombies in sight. At least, not yet. My dreams were noticeably less filled with half-destroyed bodies of the dead coming after me and my children and my unborn baby.

4. Writing is like eating. You think you're full, and couldn't ever eat again after you stuff yourself (or do a writing marathon); but without fail, you always get hungry again. In the same way, I always want to write again, no matter how burned out I may feel one day. By the next, I am craving it again.

5. Is anyone else a little bit freaked out by how expensive gas is? And that they're predicting it's going to go even higher... and no one seems to be that bothered about it? Wasn't everyone freaking out about gas being this expensive a couple years ago? Why is it okay now? I'm nervous it's going to stay this price forever now. Ugh.

So those are my thoughts today. What's on your mind this Friday? Have a great weekend!

Get used to it

2011-04-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

There are a few different things you have to get used to if you want to be a published author. One of the biggest ones is... waiting. There's lots of hard work, and deadlines, and goals, and writing, and all that. But then there's the wait. We work, we hope, we send off our stuff. And then we wait. And wait.

Hurry up... and wait some more.

Writing, reading, editing, revising, copy editing, printing, PUBLISHING a book takes time. There are moments of hurrying and then there is waiting. Waiting for the response from a CP, waiting to hear back on a query, waiting to hear back on a request, waiting for revision notes from your agent, waiting on editors to respond to submissions, waiting for your edits, waiting for your publication date.

Another time when there is a lot of waiting? When you're pregnant. I have no idea why that would be on my mind, but it is. It has nothing to do with the little person rolling and spinning and kicking and stretching in my belly; basically making herself very well known. How is that I feel like I've been pregnant forever, and still have so long to go? And yet, at the same time, I can't believe I'm going to have another baby in about 10-12 weeks! A whole new person, a lovely, untouched soul entering the world in such a short time, who will be completely reliant upon me... that'll make you pause for a minute, to say the least.

So, back to writing. Getting an agent can be like this, and having your book coming out on a shelf (aka published) does, too. You want something so badly. You go through all the ups and downs, the pain, the longing, the hard work (that's usually more applicable to writing, not pregnancy), the nausea (usually more applicable to pregnancy, than writing), you get the idea. It takes time and work and effort and patience to publish a book, or to bring a baby into the world. Because ultimately, you can't rush things. And you shouldn't want to. No matter how uncomfortable I already am (hello ligament pain, aren't you fun! not to mention a few other side effects that are new this time around but I won't mention), I definitely don't want my baby coming out too soon. I want her to be fully developed, full term, healthy, happy, strong.

The same goes for my "book baby"--I don't want it out in the wild prematurely. I want it to be fully developed and the best it possibly can be before it hits a shelf. And that means I have to wait. Wait for this baby to be done cooking, wait for the timing to be right for my book.

Hmm... did that analogy actually make sense? Or did it just end up sounding like the ramblings of a crazy preggo who's trying to convince herself it's a good thing she still has about two and a half months to go? Eh, I tried.

What about you? What are you waiting for? And do you ever get used to it?

Winner!

2011-04-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for your kind comments, feedback on my blog, and for entering the giveaway.

The random number generator has spoken, and the lucky winner (of a prize of their choosing) is...

RUTH!

Yay! *tosses confetti*

She asked for a critique, so Ruth please email me at sarablarson21 (at) gmail (dot) com, so we can figure out the details. Congrats again!

Happy Monday everyone. How was your weekend?

Friday Five (and last chance!)

2011-04-08T06:00:00.000-07:00

1. Today is your last chance to enter my blogiversary/300 follower giveaway where you get to name your own prize. Make sure and click HERE to enter if you haven't already. All you have to do is comment and tell me what you would want to win if you get picked. 2. Since I finished my WIP, I had to catch up on my other job this last week. I work from home, cutting/gluing/etc a gazillion preschool projects every month, and it's pretty boring. So I watch TV or movies to occupy the time. I can't exactly write or read and wield scissors unfortunately. However, that means I also caught up on a few other things... like: Love this show. Love everything about it. I still have an episode or two to go to be all the way caught up, so don't tell me. ;)

Ah, hello there McDreamy. I do adore you. Except that last episode? Glee's Anatomy? Oh my heavens. That did NOT work. Abort! Abort!

The new man in my life, who is very close to ousting Mr. Darcy from his place of honor. They are at least tied. I give you: Mr. Thornton.

And YES!!! they actually kiss in this movie. And Oh. My. Word. Was it ever amazing. I almost think the moment when he puts his hand on hers is almost more breathtaking than the actual kiss. Almost. That whole scene was just... perfect.

In case you have no clue what I'm talking about, I stayed up until 1 am watching this last night. LOVE it.

That was a long #2, so let's make it #3 and #4 shall we?

So finally, #5. I used to be able to stay up until 1 am to write no problem. Even when I was pregnant with SonB. But this pregnancy is kicking my butt I guess. I'm tired. I'm in pain. I'm craving sugar like it's oxygen. But despite all that, I am so grateful for this new baby that's coming. Pregnancy is such an amazing miracle (albeit an uncomfortable one), that I am grateful for every day. I don't take it for granted--you can't when it's hard to get and stay pregnant. When I feel her moving, or when I think about holding her in my arms this summer... it is all worth it. Every bit. Also, I better get used to being tired, because sleep deprivation? Here I come. Oh baby. Literally.

What's on your mind today?

(P.S. I'll post the winner on Monday!)

The Dentist of Writing

2011-04-06T07:32:00.000-07:00

Some people REALLY hate going to the dentist. I'm not one of them. Of course, I've had very few cavities in my life, and I do hate getting those filled. But the regular checkup and cleaning, I'm okay with. (I'm going today, in case you were wondering. Hoping for no cavities again...)

What does this have to do with writing? There are parts of the process that people really seem to hate. Maybe it's getting that really tough feedback and having to revise a big chunk of your book, or maybe it's writing the synopsis, or sending out the query... it varies from person to person.

But the truth is, if you want a "healthy" manuscript and writing career, every step is necessary. Not just the so-called fun ones, but the ones you might not like as much. Some people actually learn to like and enjoy the whole process, though perhaps in different ways. I do think that's possible, even though it might be hard. Others may only be able to come to tolerate parts of it. But the point is, you have to do it. All of it. You have to brush and floss, and all the little things that aren't too bad. And you have to go to the dentist--even if it's because of a cavity, or heaven forbid a root canal. You have to fix the problems. Or else your teeth will eventually rot out of your head, and the only way to salvage the situation is to get rid of 'em all and go for dentures. With all of that icky paste and the toothless grin at night and all of that stuff. Ew. You don't want to have to go there, right?

Hmmm, this analogy might be kind of out there. Oh well. I have to go to my appointment now, so it's what you get. ;)

Don't forget to enter my giveaway - only two days left, and so far your odds are pretty good at being the winner! Click HERE for more details and to enter.

Tag, you're it!

2011-04-05T06:37:00.000-07:00

The lovely Christine Bryant is hosting me over at her blog today for "Tag-You're It Tuesday!", where I got to answer one question and then tag someone else to be "it" for next week. Carolina Valdez Miller tagged me last week (thanks Carol, it was fun!).

Make sure and go HERE to check it out and see if you got tagged!

Also, don't forget to enter my contest in the last post. You get to name your own prize (and don't be shy about it, I really DO want you to pick something you want). Hope you're having a great week!

One year + 300 =

2011-04-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Wow, can you believe I've been blogging for over a year? (My exact blogiversary was March 27th) AND I reached 300 followers in that time. I am seriously blown away. I am so grateful to all of you who think I have anything of value to say; that my posts are worth your time to stop by and read and comment on. Every comment I get brightens my days, every new follower makes me so happy. And best of all are all of the friends I have made through blogging. You guys seriously rock.

So... let's have a giveaway, shall we?

CELEBRATION TIME!!!

*Cue the confetti!*

I want this to be a great giveaway, something to really make you feel glad you stop by my blog as often as you do. So.... I'm leaving it up to you! What does that mean? Read on...

All you have to do is comment on this post and tell me two things: 1. What is your favorite part of my blog, or what are your favorite posts of mine (helping me figure out what I can do to improve my blog even more for the coming years) and 2. tell me what YOU want to win! That's right, your wish is my command! Do you have a certain book you're pining for? Would love a critique of some sort? You name it, you got it! (Please keep it within reason, I'm unfortunately pretty tight financially; so as much as I'd love to give you a Kindle, or twenty books, or something crazy like that, I can't.) The contest will remain open until Friday, April 8th at 10:00 pm MST. I will announce the winner on Monday morning! Also, I must limit it to the U.S. and Canada, for the aforementioned reason... unless any of my international followers pick something that doesn't need to be mailed, in which case, enter away!

THAT'S IT! Easy right? This isn't an April Fool's joke, I'm totally serious. You name your prize. The random number generator picks you, and whammo! You get it!

If you really want to earn extra entries, you may do the following:

Tweet/FB: + 1 point each (leave me links so I can verify)
Blog sidebar: +1 point (leave linkage)
Old Follower: +2 points
New follower: +1 point
Blog post: +4 points (leave linkage)
Refer a new follower (the person must give you credit): +4 points

If you do the extra stuff, please be so kind as to add up all of your points for me in your comment. I'm pregnant, remember? That pregnancy brain stuff is no myth, let me tell you.

So, there you have it! I am so grateful to all of you, and am very excited to make someone's wish come true! Hope you all have a great weekend, and I can't wait to see what you come up with. :)

(P.S. don't you hate it when you format a post, and preview it, and it looks fine, and then when it actually posts, blogger squishes the thing into one paragraph? Three times in a row? No matter what you do? Love that. So much.)

Carrie Ryan isn't as dark or hollow as you might think...

2011-03-30T07:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I honestly knew she wasn't dark or hollow, but since her book is called THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES, well... I was glad to know for certain that she is actually funny, and smart (a former lawyer!), and inspiring. I was lucky enough to go with Natalie Whipple to see her and get her new book signed last night. I'm so excited that more and more YA authors are coming to SLC to do signings! It is so fun to get out, meet new authors, and see all of my author/writer/book blogging friends in the community.

James Dashner (not only are they friends, they share the same editor), Carrie Ryan, Me, Natalie Whipple

Like I said, I adore going to author signings. I love meeting them, learning about their journeys--well, just learning from them period. Carrie was so inspiring. (Plus she is an absolutely amazing author. Her way with words is absolutely breathtaking. Who else could make a book about zombies into something so beautiful?)

She has an amazing story, but I won't give you all the details here. One of the biggest points she made that stuck with me is to make a plan, and stick with it. She made a ten year plan: she told herself she was going to write a book a year, and revise it, and submit it (be it to agents or editors) every year for ten years. Her goal was to be a full time author by year ten. She reached her goal around year six or seven. (hopefully I got the details right, I'm going off memory.) She (and I) firmly believe in the power of writing goals down, and doing what it takes to make them reality. If you haven't yet, go make some short and long term goals, and write them down. Then do what it takes to make it happen.

Beyond being smart and inspiring, she really lived up to Kiersten White's claim that she's funny. We were laughing the whole time. If you have the chance to see her, I highly recommend it.

Also, she may burn a book and then give it away.

Huh? Yeah, she used I AM NOT A SERIAL KILLER by Dan Wells to block the projector while she was talking, and when she picked it back up she'd burned the cover a little bit. I ended up winning it (woohoo!) and Dan was there, so he personalized it for me. Here's what he wrote:

"Sara - this book was personally burned by Carrie Ryan. Dan Wells."

I love book signings.

Monday Madness

2011-03-28T08:30:00.000-07:00

Guess what I typed on Friday night?

THE END.

WOOHOO! I've already begun the first revision, just going through it for major mistakes and stuff like that. Then it will be time for feedback and a little break to get some perspective.

So, you would think my week should be starting off great, right? I mean, I finished my goal almost an entire week early, and will have time to *hopefully* finish this run through before the end of the month and get it sent off. But...

"A two-year-old is kind of like having a blender, but you don't have a top for it." - Jerry Seinfeld

That is the morning I've been having already. I went to the bathroom and came out to find my two-year-old on the counter, dumping all the fish food down the drain. At least he wasn't trying to get the fish out of his bowl, or dumping the food in the bowl, (both things he's done before), but yeah. I love that kid, but holy smokes is he ever, um, precocious. Anyone who knows him knows what I mean. I'm not sure I've ever met a more independent toddler in my life. He has to do EVERYTHING himself. And I mean absolutely, postively everything. How do you explain to a two-year-old that he can't make himself toast? Or cook his own eggs? Or that he doesn't need to flush the toilet for me when I go to the bathroom? Or change his own diaper? Or take the fish out of the bowl? Or run his own bath? This list could go on and on and on. The point is.... he is too fun but what a handful! Good thing he is so dang cute.

My little monster showing me his green milk on St. Patty's day.

Son A and Son B playing on the swings the one nice day we've had since October.

I'm really hoping warm weather decides to come around soon. I'm thinking these boys need some more outside play time. (And so does their mom!)

How's your Monday going?

p.s. I just made my bed, and heard him start to cry... (two seconds ago when I came in to make my bed, he was sitting on the couch, eating a bag of crackers, watching Dinosaur Train). I go out and he's in the fridge, somehow has gotten a package of crescent rolls open (how does a two-year-old do that? I can barely get those stupid things open!), and sliced his finger on it. He wants me to make orange rolls. He's crying now because he doesn't understand why the crescent rolls aren't orange rolls. Oh that kid. You just have to laugh sometimes.

Friday Five: short and sweet

2011-03-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

1. My brain is quite literally on the verge of reaching fried status, so that is a big reason why this is going to be short and sweet. But the great news is that I'm definitely going to meet my goal of finishing the first draft of my WIP by the end of the month! Possibly this weekend. Yay! *tosses confetti at myself* *sneezes and wonders why I just did that*

2. I'm almost to 300 followers (just one away!) and I'm wondering if I should do a giveaway to celebrate. Or maybe I should wait (since I did a 200 followers one not too long ago), until I hit a bigger number, like 500... hmm... what do you think? And if I did get convinced to do a giveaway, what would you prefer this time: books or critiques?

3. The weather is driving me nuts. I want it to be WARM. No more blizzards. NO MORE.

4. You know what is not fun? Asking someone when they're due (because they're obviously pregnant), and thinking "she's totally due after me because she's way smaller than I am" and then they tell you they're due a month before you. BEFORE. Did I mention her baby belly was smaller than mine? AND I was taller than her. Isn't there supposed to be some rule that tall people get to have smaller baby bumps because there's more space for the baby? So not true for me. Ah, well. What can you do?

5. I love listening to SonA read. To see him putting concepts together, and pointing out "silent 'e' words" to me, and finding joy in understanding the world around him on a new level. I hope I can help instill a true love of reading in him.

Bonus thought: I have to give a shout out to my wonderful friend Carolina Valdez Miller who signed with an agent last week. (If you aren't already, make sure and go follow her. She seriously rocks you guys.)

WOOHOO!!! *throws confetti at her* *hopes she doesn't sneeze too*

She is the one of the kindest, most caring, hard working people I've "met" (not in person yet unfortunately, though I hope sometime soon to change that!), and I couldn't be more thrilled for her. Her book sounds amazing, and I'm beyond excited to see what happens next. Congrats again Carol, you deserve it! :)

Maybe I also should have titled this post "random." Whatevs, remember how I said my brain is nearly fried? Yeah. It is.

So, what's on your mind this week?

Speaking at a Writing Conference and stuff

2011-03-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

Yep, for those of you who didn't already see my announcement on FB or Twitter, I am going to be speaking/presenting at the American Fork Arts Council Spring Conference for Writers on April 30th. It really is a great conference for any local writers looking for an affordable, shorter option. It's only one day (unless you do the friday night intensive), and has some fun, diverse classes planned. I will be speaking/teaching about getting an agent, blogging, taking feedback, and more. Quite a range of topics! I just hope I can do a good job. I'm very excited for this opportunity, and hope to see many of you there! If nothing else, you can come to witness me attempting to look professional, put-together, cute and knowledgeable while extremely pregnant. Your excitement level just went up ten degrees, I know it. I mean, if that's not a reason to come, I don't know what is. (I'm totally kidding. If you do come, just pretend I'm one of those tiny pregnant girls who look like they should barely be finding out the gender when they're actually due. Because I'm not one of them. Not even close. Have I mentioned that I'm measuring an entire week AHEAD of where I should be as of my last appointment?)

Anyway, for details be sure to contact Caleb Warnock, the head honcho in charge of the whole thing. (If you don't know who he is, one way to find out is to read the acknowledgements in HUSH, HUSH.) Here are the official details:

The Spring Writer's Conference is on Friday, April 29 & Saturday, April 30 at the Historic City Hall, 31 N. Church St., American Fork. Time: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
For more information call Caleb Warnock 801-592-3136 or calebwarnock@yahoo.com

In other news, I broke 60k on my WIP. My goal is to be done by the end of the month. That gives me just over a week. I think I can do it, but we have a few busy nights this week with the soccer season starting up again. (SonA plays and SHH is the coach, so it can get pretty busy!) Not to mention deadlines looming on the other part time job, meaning valuable writing time has to get sucked away by work. Hoping I can somehow eke out enough good writing time without having to try and think coherent thoughts at 2 am to make my goal. We'll see.

Just so you know, I actually did have a topic I was intending to blog about today, other than the conference and the writing update. But for some reason, I've sat here staring at the computer for ten minutes trying to remember what it was with no luck. Since it's getting late, and I still have to write at least 2-3 more pages to make my minimum page per day goal, I guess we'll just call this good. (I write my posts the night before for the most part, in case you didn't know.)

How are your goals coming? Are you planning on going to any fun conferences this year?

A little Shakespeare to start the week

2011-03-21T06:00:00.000-07:00

This quote stuck with me when I read it, and thought it would be a good way to start off the week:

"Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt." -- William Shakespeare

Don't you just love Shakespeare? Doubts really can be stinkers, can't they? I know they can for me. Even with how much I love my new WIP, doubt is hanging in there every step of the way, with every word I write. "Is this actually a good idea?"... "Am I getting any better as an author?" ... "Does this actually totally and completely suck?" You know, minor stuff. Ha ha.

But I have to shove those doubts away, and keep on keeping on. I'm never going to "win any good" if I let my doubts drive me rather than my hopes, dreams, and ultimately my belief in myself. The ironic thing is that no matter how bad I think I may doing while I'm writing something, I inevitably realize it's much better than I thought when I go back to edit it later. Interesting, isn't it? Sometimes I think doubt is a type of self-sabotage to keep us from achieving something really amazing. Our worst doubts seem to attack at the moments when we are actually creating something that exceeds anything we have created before. Maybe it's because we have to stretch to do it--to get to that next level. So, what do you choose to believe in: the doubts? Or the belief that you ARE talented and worthy and able to create something beautiful/amazing/awe-inspiring/or that-at-least-doesn't-suck?

Doubt or belief, which one do you let drive you? What are your deep thoughts for this Monday morning?

Friday Five

2011-03-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

1. Going back to my wednesday post, I realized another movie I watched all the time as a teen (and could quote almost the whole thing from) was Maverick. "If I can't touch you, I can touch your shirt and dream." It's where I learned a proper southern accent from. ;) Just a random thought I had.

2. I am happy and sad. Happy because my migraines have been almost nonexistent since I scaled back on my internet time and tried to limit most of my computer use to just writing time. But I'm sad because I'm missing out on so many of your blogs. :( Will you comment and tell me how you are doing? What's new? What's exciting or boring in your life right now? Because I'm bummed I can't keep up on everyone like I used to. Maybe I can try again soon and see if the migraines stay away this time. Maybe it was just a phase. One can hope, right?

3. My goal right now is to write at least ten pages a day, and I'm crossing my fingers that will equate to this rough draft being done by the end of my month. So far, I've achieved that goal or surpassed it every day. But for some reason, actually telling myself I want to write that many pages seems to make it harder to get there some nights. Weird how that works. But I force myself on, and will continue to do so. Usually the times when I force myself to keep writing, even when I feel like quitting, is when I end up writing the most!

4. I can't seem to stop eating sugar in all its varieties. Cake, candy, juice, brownies, fruit, cake, you name it. I don't make it for myself, but I keep having "opportunities" to eat it, or have it given to me, and I just can't say no. Usually, I'm able to limit myself to once a week and keep it to small servings. But with this pregnancy, I'm all about the sugar baby. Is it a girl thing?

5. We had a traditional St. Patrick's Day dinner last night, with corned beef and cabbage and a bunch of green food. My mom usually makes the beef and my sisters and I pitch in on the rest. This year, my mom is in NYC, so I decided to keep the tradition alive and offered to make the main dish. It was my first time, but I think it turned out well. My sisters brought their husbands, a beautiful baby girl all dressed in green, yummy salad and dessert and we watched Jimmer make a bunch of incredible shots. We had a great time. However, I didn't get any writing done after dinner. Luckily, I did get eight pages written during SonB's nap (and SonA was at a play group) earlier, but that is still two pages short of my goal. I'm exhausted, and unfortunately have a headache. Do I make myself stay up and write? Or go to bed and call it good? Hmmm....

What's on your mind today? Did you do anything fun for St. Patty's Day? Am I the only person who can't find the will power to "just say no!" to dessert??

LIKE MANDARIN non-blog fest

2011-03-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, I have been wracking my brain all week, trying to come up with my Mandarin. Who did I want to be like as a teen? I don't think I had one particular person. I was the oldest, so I didn't have older siblings to idolize. I loved my mom, but wasn't old enough yet to want to be like her. I loved movies, and books, and wanted to live portions of the character's lives. (Usually the parts where they kissed hot boys. I was all about daydreaming of kissing hot boys when I was a teen.) Luckily I married a hot boy, so I get to live that particular dream whenever I want. But I didn't have ONE that I wanted to be. I wanted to be too many things:

I wanted to be the ugly duckling (who was actually gorgeous but just needed contacts) that the hot boy would fall in love with. [I had the ugly duckling who needed contacts part--particularly in middle school--just not the rest of it...]

I apparently wanted to live in the 1800s and marry a man with a british accent.

I also wanted to be famous and have someone love me for who I really was.

I wanted to be kissed for the first time in a truly spectacular, Michael Vartanian way. (Totally didn't happen btw, my first kiss was horrible. Stupid boy.)

Again, with the accent. And also, wanting a boy to "get" me and love me despite my, um, eccentricities.

(I did love movies, particularly chick flicks, if you couldn't tell. I could have kept going, but don't want to bore you. This is just a small sampling of what I could remember loving in my high school years.)

So, where does that leave me?

I don't know. I guess that's why I became a writer. Because I couldn't find the one perfect person/character I wanted to be. I liked pieces of them, parts of their stories... so I'd take those pieces and parts and come up with my own stories where I could live out my fantasies of what I wish my life could be like. Many of the books I wrote as a teen were quite similar to other books I'd read, or movies I'd seen, for that very reason. Luckily, I eventually learned how to come up with my own characters and ideas.

So, tell me, who is/was your Mandarin?

I've heard so many great things about Kirsten's book, and I can't wait to read it. Check out her blog for more. Maybe once I read it, I'll have a better answer to this question!!

Devastation

2011-03-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

I'm sure everyone has seen the pictures of the devastation in Japan by now. And how could we forget what just happened in New Zealand? Or Haiti? Or, or, or... The list keeps going on and on. Natural disasters are becoming more common than, well, I'm not sure what. They just keep happening. Massive destruction and death tolls in the thousands seem to splash across the news every few months. Is anyone else nervous about who and where is next?

So what does this have to do with writing? Nothing. Except that maybe, just maybe, a book you or I write that gets published could be the means of escape for someone, somewhere, someday. Reading can take you away from the troubles in your life, and transport you into another place with another person (the main character of the book). At least it can for me. And I imagine there are millions of people who could use an escape right now all across the world.

And has anyone else noticed how amazing the author community is? How they band together to donate signed books and services and anything and everything they can think of to raise money and help out all the people and countries who are suffering? I am in awe. Maybe someday I'll have a book that is in enough demand to offer for auction. For now, I can only offer my prayers on behalf of the people of Japan and all those around the world suffering, dying, or struggling to survive.

If you want to see a truly chilling video of the true power of a tsunami, look at the link I posted on my FB page. I guess this is one reason to be glad I don't leave anywhere near a beach.

Friday Five

2011-03-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

1. I'm just over 40k into my new WIP. It's an interesting place to be--I am excited to be that far, but also wishing I were further. (As in DONE.) Yes, for those of you wondering (or who know), I am able to write fast. But honestly, I almost have to. If I don't, it seems like my idea(s) start to drift off and I can't get them back. I have to get the words and plots out as fast as I can so they don't disappear on me. Also, I start to doubt myself when it takes longer. For some reason, even though I'm super excited about this idea, and I want and need to get it done, sometimes I just have a hard time concentrating. I didn't have that problem the last time I was pregnant. But maybe since I'm having a girl this time, she's making my brain react differently. Who knows.

2. Sometimes recently, I lose my train of thought. Or worse, I forget major events. Like SonA's parent-teacher conferences. Yeah, my appointment was at 4. I remembered when I saw a flashing light on my phone around 4:30, checked my phone, and saw the reminder on my calendar. Thankfully she still squeezed us in, but seriously! What is my problem? I've never been this spacey in my life. I think we sacrifice more than our bodies when we have babies. Just sayin'. The good news is that he is doing awesome, even if I'm losing my mind. He doesn't always do his "centers" apparently (the kid does have a pretty short attention span sometimes), but he scored above average or well above average (aka off the chart) on all of his tests. Way to go, buddy!

3. I'm taking SonA skiing for the first time today. And by "taking him skiing," I mean enrolling him in ski school while I sit and watch, since pregnancy + skiing = no bueno. I'm taking the laptop in hopes of getting some good #amwriting time in. Hopefully the beautiful mountains will be the perfect setting to help me focus. Except I have this feeling I'm going to want to watch his attempts to ski the whole time. So we'll see...

4. In case you were wondering, my (early) birthday dinner at Benihana was Ah-MAZE-ing. Yummy, yum, yum. I could eat there every night. Or at least once a week. Okay, once a month?

Please??

Ready to start gorging ourselves on a plethora of amazing food.

5. I have a lot of books calling my name right now, begging to be read. I want to read them. I yearn to read them. But remember #1? Yeah, I have got to stop getting distracted!

What's on your mind today?

What day is it again?

2011-03-09T13:06:00.000-08:00

So, I'm going along, la la la. Go to the gym, showering before 11 am (woohoo! major accomplishment!), making lunch, cleaning the kitchen, entertaining my kids, thinking about my WIP. Obsessing over how much I wrote yesterday (1500 words for an outline to map out the rest of the book since I was on page 135 and thinking, "um, what should happen next to get me to _____?"; and between 3-4k words on the mss). I am happy about that, but at the same time want it to go even faster. Also, I've spent a good chunk of my day daydreaming of the amazing dinner I get to have tonight. Free meal at Benihana (my FAVE restaurant) for my birthday! But my birthday isn't until Saturday you say? I know, but they changed their policy and now their free birthday meal certificates are only valid Mon-Thurs. Stinketh, but what can I do? So we're going tonight.

And then it dawns on me. Today is Wednesday. Last night I was supposed to do my blog post for today. But in the midst of trying to write and then falling asleep out of pure exhaustion a quarter to who-knows-when, I FORGOT.

Hence, in place of a real post, you get this. A strange, rambling recap of why there wasn't a real post. But may I direct you to a few other amazing posts that are more worthy of your time? Kiersten White's last two posts have been incredible, and worth reading over and over. Check them out here. Also, Brodi Ashton also has a great post you should check out on writing what you DON'T know. And as always, Natalie Whipple's post today is super amazing.

Have a great Wednesday, and don't salivate too much thinking of all the amazing food I'm going to be gorging myself on--I mean, eating--tonight.

It's Vlog Time - With LiLa!!

2011-03-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to have LiLa on my blog today! I had the chance to read an ARC of their debut The Liar Society, and let me tell you--it is AWESOME. You have to go get this book. I just adore Lisa and Laura, and couldn't be more thrilled to take part in their blog tour. I, for one, couldn't stop laughing when I watched this video. I gave you a hint of what was to come in their vlog interview last Friday, so instead of teasing you some more, let's just get to it, shall we?

And now a message from Lisa and Laura:

Thanks for putting up with us, everyone! If you want to enter The Liar Society Blog Tour of Awesome contest, and really, who wouldn't want to enter!?! There's a $100 Amazon gift card up for grabs! Just click here and enter the super secret password, PINK, for an entry. Remember you can enter one time for each stop on our blog tour, so be sure to click here and see where else we're visiting this month to maximize your chances of winning.

Thanks again ladies! Wasn't that hysterical? Oh, how I love them. Remember to enter their awesome contest, and go get your copy of The Liar Society right now.

Friday Five

2011-03-04T06:00:00.000-08:00

1. This pregnancy has been giving me migraines. I've never had them consistently before. Random ones, maybe once every year or two, yes. Migraines almost every day? Not so much. And unfortunately, being on the computer is one of the triggers. Because of this, I have had to limit how much time I spend on the computer. Since I'm a writer I have to spend at least a few hours on it every day to write (although some days it just hurts too much and I can't). Why am I sharing this with you? Because unfortunately it means I have to severely limit my internet time, which means I haven't been able to keep on everyone's blogs like I'd hope to. Sometimes I read and just don't comment so I can get through them faster (before the headache hits). Please know that I am trying to read, and I still care about you all A LOT, but if I don't comment as much (and if you've noticed that I haven't been for the last few weeks), that is why. I hope this migraine thing is just a phase and will pass, but we'll see. At least I know there is a for sure deadline this summer...

2. Migraines suck. I have much more empathy for SHH who used to get chronic migraines. (He's since learned what his triggers are and rarely gets them now, hurray!)

3. The Liar Society (which just got released!!) is totally made of awesome and so are the authors (Lisa and Laura Roecker). If you've been living under a rock and haven't heard of it (or them), be sure and check back on Monday for a totally hysterical vlog interview they did for my blog. Trust me when I tell you that you don't want to miss it. There's one part in particular when one of them (I won't say who, you'll have to watch to find out) makes the most hysterical mistake. I laughed so hard I may have snorted. And so did they. Luckily for me, I wasn't on video when I did--but they were. Make sure and tune in!

4. I'm still in love with my new WIP, and I'm hoping to finish it by the end of the month. That would normally be an easy goal for me, but with the migraines, the sick kids, the local play I (and my whole family) are in, my part time job, and everything else... we'll, I've got my fingers crossed, but we'll see. Once I set a goal though (especially in a public forum like this), I tend to do whatever it takes to meet it. So there you have it. WIP done by April 1st (if not earlier). No fooling.

5. I'm going to be another year older in just over a week. Not sure how I feel about that. I used to LOVE birthdays, I couldn't wait until I got older. That is, until I turned 21. Then I started to wish that I could just keep turning 21. I still love celebrating, and getting to be a little bit spoiled for a day (one can hope anyway!), but the age part kind of stinks these days. Not too bad yet, but it's starting to get scary. The years seem to go by faster and faster the older I get. What's up with that? Do you remember being a teen and every year seemed to take forever?

So, what's on your mind today? Have a wonderful weekend, and don't forget the hysterical vlog coming your way on Monday!

In which I love Despicable Me and Castle

2011-03-02T06:00:00.000-08:00

I finally got to watch Despicable Me and catch up on the last two (whoa!) episodes of Castle. They were both amazing, in completely different ways.

(Beckett and Castle... she needs to figure out that authors are way cooler than doctors, asap! Especially when the author is Nathan Fillion... I mean, Castle. Unless you're sick or dying, in which case, yay doctors! But in this fictional world of TV...)

I love both shows for completely different reasons, but the two things that were the same across the board were interesting characters and awesome dialogue. Both shows have excellent examples of each.

Hmmm... wonder if the same could be said for books? I'm going to go with YES. Truly interesting characters and really great dialogue don't just suck me into movies or TV shows. If a book has both of those elements, I just can't put it down.

I think there's a word for it; one word that encompasses both of those elements (and even a little bit more). Hmm, what was it again... oh, right. VOICE. Ever heard of that? Ever heard any agents or editors say that above all else, a truly great voice is what grabs their attention? I know I have.

So tell me, what are some of your favorite characters and why? What "voices" have you read recently (or in the past) that you just can't forget and wish could go on and on? And how do you find and show a really great, unique voice in your characters?

But it's hard!

2011-02-28T06:00:00.000-08:00

SonA (my five-year-old) is a really good helper... most of the time. But sometimes he'll start a "job" and about halfway through tell me, "I can't do it anymore." I tell him of course he can and he'll respond, "But it's hard!"

Isn't that the truth? With my son, I cheer him on, tell him he can do it, and that most things that are worthwhile are hard. He has to yet to be unable to finish the chore or project he was working on. That is a life lesson that is worth learning young. For most people, most of the time, anything worth having or doing takes work. And usually, it takes hard work.

My mom had a saying growing up that she repeated to us over and over. "A job worth doing, is worth doing well." I hated that phrase when it applied to cleaning my room, or the bathrooms, or whatever chore she was referring to. I was more of the "a job I have to do is only worth doing as well as necessary to make Mom let me go do what I want" mentality. But guess what? She was right after all dangit, and it's a good thing she didn't give up telling us that, because it is true for a whole lot more than housework.

Writing is hard. Trying to get an agent is hard. Trying to get published is hard. But you have to do your part of the job, do it well, and then stick it out.

"But it's hard," you say? Yeah, I know. Trust me, I really, really know. But if it's something you really want, it's worth it, right? So we all keep working at it, and working at it, and we will all make it where we want to go if we don't give up.

On the road again...

2011-02-24T22:27:00.000-08:00

I am going to be gone tomorrow, on a quick 2 day, one night trip with SHH. He's going for work, and I'm tagging along to get a little break alone with him before Baby #3 makes her debut this summer. So, no Friday post this week. But I will be back on Monday. Hope you all have a great weekend!

My thoughts on handling feedback

2011-02-23T07:09:00.000-08:00

There were some great responses in the comments on Monday about how you deal with critiques and feedback. I'd suggest going back and reading them if you haven't already.

As for my advice, it's pretty similar. To start, you have to know your story. What is the core of your plot? What are the character traits that are integral to your protagonist? And so on. You have to decide what is vital, so that you can know what you are willing to change (which should be a good portion of the book--this doesn't work if you decide everything you wrote is so important you can't change it). It's good to have multiple trusted CPs, so that you can look for similarities or themes in their feedback. If one person seriously can't stand a part of your book, and another loves it... that's a judgement call on your half. However, if you get multiple people telling you they really don't like something, that's when you know there's a problem that needs addressing. If you get a suggestion that is really difficult to swallow, take a day or two before you respond to it. Let it sink in, let it "simmer." Something that sounds horrible or impossible at first, might end up whipping your book into shape. You might go from thinking "I have no clue how to even fix that" to "Wait! I could do this" with a little bit of time to think it over. Also, it never hurts to try something if there is even one tiny ounce of you that wonders if it would make your manuscript better. You can always change it back.

I could say more, but again, there was already so much great advice on Monday, I think it would be too repetitive. The trick with feedback is to understand that someone is critiquing your writing, not YOU. It is not a personal attack. Someone saw enough value in your work to take the time to tell you what they think. Whether you use their suggestions or not, that is always worthy of gratitude.

If you have any more thoughts or advice about it, feel free to share!

Taking Feedback

2011-02-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

One thing you have to learn as a writer is how to take feedback. Getting critiques and edits are a vital and necessary part of the craft. Also, if you ever plan on getting published, you are guaranteed multiple rounds of revisions with your agent and editor(s). The trick is taking the feedback you get and being objective about it. You have to keep the core of you story alive while polishing all those nasty edges until they shine. And you have to maintain your belief in the quality of your writing, no matter how hard the critiques might be to swallow.

One of the most wonderful and hardest parts of being an author is that it is ALL subjective. You may have one person tell you they loved an aspect of your book and another tell you they couldn't stand the exact same thing. So how do you deal with that? Who do you trust? Or what if you get a critique back that tears your book apart? What then? How do you know when to make a change or not?

I'm really curious to hear your thoughts on this today, and then I'll share mine on Wednesday.

You know what rocks though? When your husband comes in after catching up on your current WIP, and freaks out at you because THERE ARE NO MORE PAGES. And he tells you that you must write more RIGHT NOW, he'll wait for you because he can't go to sleep now anyway. That kind of feedback, I have to admit, is kind of fun. He he he...

Happy Monday! (And for all my friends in the U.S., Happy President's Day!)

Friday Five

2011-02-18T06:23:00.000-08:00

1. My left eye kept twitching yesterday, for hours. I was told by numerous people it was probably because I am tired. Tired? Why would I be tired?

2. I've started getting up at 6 am to write in the mornings, because my other part-time job keeps stealing writing time from me at night. But this new WIP needs to be written, and I don't know when else to do it. 6 might not be early for some of you, but for an exhausted mommy every hour of sleep is precious.

3. Nesting instinct is kicking in a bit, I get these spurts of energy to clean. (Which, if you know me well, is rare.) Like yesterday, when I decided to go through this huge pile of papers, homework, pictures, Christmas letters/cards, etc. that was stacked in a corner of our house. I got it done, feeling pretty good about myself only to hear a strange ripping sound from the family room. Realizing SonB was no longer in his room playing with toys, I hurried out just in time to see him dumping a box of mac and cheese all over the floor. He'd torn it apart, and my dog was going to town eating dry noodles. Unfortunately my nesting instinct had disappeared by this point, but I had no choice except to keep cleaning. Bummer.

4. I love baby girl clothes. I could go broke on all the things I want to buy our baby. I have to hold myself back A LOT, because we don't have a money tree in the backyard. (Do any of you know where I can find one?) I've been making bows (I know, shocking right?! ME, being crafty??), and other things. I'm so excited for her to come this summer. Random side note, but yoga seems to get harder the bigger your baby gets. Some of those positions are a bit difficult with a bulging baby bump. Also running, and many other forms of exercising, seem to be increasing in difficulty. Just in case you weren't sure. But I'm determined to continue working out through the whole pregnancy. Even though chances are I'm going to swell up like the Goodyear Blimp once it gets hot, and no one will be able to tell anyway. Oh well.

5. Okay, so I might be a little bit tired.

In honor of L-O-V-E

2011-02-16T06:56:00.000-08:00

So, since Monday was V-day, and this week is all about the love... I'm curious, what are your favorite "love-inspired" scenes from a book (or books)? Nothing R rated please, but I'd love to find out what the best kisses are in your opinions. For me, the romance in a book makes or breaks it (usually). I am a sucker for romance. I love falling in love with new characters. I love experiencing their first kisses, their first loves, their first kiss after they both finally admit they're in love. You get the idea.

Somehow I missed out on the big kissing blogfest that a bunch of authors participated in (posting kissing scenes from their books). That was so much fun to read people's posts! So, this is my way of joining in on the fun.

So tell me, what are your favorites? (and if you want to include movies/TV shows too, that's fine. I mean, I did in this post, so...) ;)

Falling in love...

2011-02-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Any romantic plans for today/tonight?

I am very lucky to have an amazing hubby to celebrate V-day with, and two adorable little boys. We're going to have our "official" ultrasound this morning to see our baby girl again. Very exciting! I am in love with all of them--all the people I am lucky enough to call my family. We're just planning on having a family dinner, and celebrating together at home. Pretty low key, but hopefully will be fun.

I'm also in love with my new WIP. I got this idea the end of last week, and started writing. I have one document full of notes about the plot and characters, and the actual document, which is already 6,000+ words. (In less than five hours total of writing--despite my excitement level, I had to curtail my writing time over the weekend. SHH got home from Mexico Saturday morning, and I figured it wouldn't be too nice to say "Welcome home! See ya, I'm going to go write!") But even with the lack of writing time, I'm pleased with how much I got done. Not too shabby! It's been a long time since I've been able to feel this excited about my writing, or that I've written something new this fast. Yes, I usually do write quickly, but recently my self-doubt has been a hindrance. Words have been painfully slow, plots hard to decipher, characters kept slipping through my fingers. This new WIP has been flying out, and I LOVE it. I am definitely in the infatuation stage. I'm hoping it lasts long enough to bust out a first draft. Then we can move on to the "figuring out what your flaws are" stage, where I can hopefully continue to cultivate my love for this project, despite it's inevitable problems.

Who knew the stages of writing/revising could be so applicable to real relationships? Ooh, except for this stage: the "I've figured out what your flaws/trouble-spots are and now... I'm going to fix them all" stage. In real life, you love someone in spite of their flaws (or maybe because of them). In writing--you find the flaws and you grind them out. You whip your WIP into shape, and make it perfect. Or as close as possible, anyway. But for now, I'm just focusing on having fun and enjoying being in love.

Lots of love for me to be happy about today. How about you?

Friday Five

2011-02-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

1. I'm beginning to think that groundhog might not be able to predict the weather. It's shocking to say the least. But the evidence is what it is. That elusive, oh-so-desperately wanted season called Spring? So hasn't shown up yet. Not even a hint. It was in the single digits this morning, my car frozen solid yet again. Argh. Pux-a-whatever-your-name-is, you better make it warm up soon, or I'm coming for vengeance!

2. Sometimes, you need to start a new project to clear your mind. Sometimes, you feel like your writing is just utter crap, and playing with a new idea helps you remember why you love writing. I'm not saying that I am flirting with a SNI (Shiny New Idea), just that sometimes, for some people, it can actually be a good thing.

3. Scraping off a frozen car sucks even more when you know your husband is basking in the heat and sun in Mexico. For "work."

4. Really interesting characters are multi-faceted. They're complicated. They're light and dark. I read someone's review today that said they were kind of bored with a book because the "hero" was SO good. Real people have flaws. We often find these flaws annoying in real life (oh come on, you know you do). But fictional characters without any flaws or failings or problems of some sort tend to be... well, boring. I wonder if that would be the same in real people. Do our flaws and foibles give us depth? Make us interesting? Would be boring if we were perfect? I guess we'll never know...

5. Taking your two-year-old to the movies might not be a good idea. Just sayin'. The five-year-old loved it, watched the whole thing. The two-year-old? Enthralled... for about ten minutes. Short movies are 90 minutes long. Popcorn bought me ten more minutes. Candy lasted only as long as he took to chew it. You do the math. From what I got to see of it, Megamind was an interesting example of multi-faceted characters. So are my kids.

How's that for a mix of profound and inane on this Friday morning? Pretty much sums up my week. All over the place. What's on your mind today?

One of those days

2011-02-09T07:53:00.000-08:00

You know those days when you start it off by dragging your pregnant self to the gym, and then promptly hit your head on a metal appendage of one of the machines? (Because you were bending down to put your phone where you can see it on the floor, because if you miss the call back from your dr.'s office, you can guarantee not to hear from them again that day...) And your music was up so loud you're not really sure just how loudly you yelled "Ow!" But based on the strange stares, it must have been pretty loud. Then you get home to find out one of your boys has left the Hershey's chocolate syrup open on its side in the fridge, creating a lake of thick chocolate mess all over your entire fridge, food, and floor? And then you drop your son's hot ham and cheese sandwich face down on the floor... and then and then and then... Yeah. Yesterday was one of those days.

Which means I didn't get my blog post put together for today. Whoops.

So, um, maybe you should just read my last post again and call it good. Or else check back Friday. Hoping for a better day today...

In pursuit of Happiness

2011-02-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

I don't know if anyone else is like me, thinking "when I get here" or "when I accomplish this goal" or "when this happens," THEN I will be so happy, I'll hardly be able to stand it. But then those things don't happen when we think or hope. What then? Rather than achieving the happiness we assumed we'd have, we suddenly feel deflated, lost, hopeless maybe--decidedly unhappy.

I don't want to waste my life waiting for the next "big dream" to come true to be happy. I am good at staying positive and focusing on right now, being happy with where I am... most of the time. But I slip up. Things don't go the way I'd hoped, or planned. Doubts creep in. My "failures" loom and sometimes overshadow the blessings of my days.

"There is only one way to happiness, and that is to cease worrying things which are beyond the power of our will." - Epictetus

I know I need to stop worrying about the things that are outside the power of my will, or my ability to do anything about. Some days I'm good about it, some days not so much. My children are young right now, and I don't want to miss these years of their lives, dreaming of what the future holds. I want to hold on to them, to cherish them. I want to cherish where my life is right now. Have I met all the dreams and goals I thought and hoped I would by February of 2011? No. But were they all in my control? No. Have I done the best I can do, made all the effort I can to reach those goals? Yes, I have. The ones in my power, I have reached. So I need to learn to be happy with that knowledge. And someday, maybe those dreams that aren't in my power, that I hope to have come true, will become reality. I certainly hope so. But for now, I need to remember to find joy in the dreams that have come true -- a wonderful husband, two amazing sons, a beautiful daughter on the way, shelter, food, cars that run.

What do you do to stay happy when things don't go the way you hope or planned?

Weathering the storm

2011-02-04T06:00:00.000-08:00

With the snowpocalypse attacking at least half of our nation (and also ice and freezing cold temperatures and just crazy winter weather hitting at least another third of it), it got me thinking. Not just about how much I wish Spring were here (as you could tell by my previous post), but about our characters. You know, the ones in the books we're writing. (Well, I'm assuming most of the people who read my blog are writing/have written books.)

What do these horrible storms have to do with our characters? Everything. Sort of. Okay, hang in there with me and I'll try to explain.

I asked you on Monday: what makes you love a book? For some it is the characters. For others it's really good writing, or a great, fast-paced plot. No matter what facet of a book makes you fall in love with it, I'd say (and hopefully you'll agree), that any book is only as good as its snowpocalypse. Huh? What is she rambling about now... ? And how are you supposed to add a blizzard to you book, when you're writing a story set in a tropical climate where it doesn't snow? I'm not talking about adding an actual storm to your book. I'm talking about that thing that nearly every great book has--the ultimate, shocking, horrifying, unexpected, gut-twisting "storm" the MC has to get through or overcome or survive and grow stronger from to reach the conclusion of the book. Is my strange, meandering thought process becoming clearer now? I'm talking about the trial or catastrophe or test or whatever you want to call it that gives the book it's driving force. In Harry Potter, every book had a huge confrontation at the end, usually ending up in someone's death. They tended to get progressively more intense, more powerful, and more all-encompassing as the series went on. The stakes were raised higher and higher. And every time you raise those stakes higher, (make the obstacle/trial/whatever it is harder and more unbelievably difficult to survive) the more the reader is going to care about what happens.

If your MC is trying to drive home in a mild blizzard, and is somewhat nervous, but hey, the roads are salted and it's not too bad... well, eh. That's okay and all, I guess. Kind of a yawn-fest. But if your MC is caught in the worst blizzard in decades, that covers half a country, and strands thousands on a major highway with snow drifts burying their cars in a matter of a few hours... Whoa. Now that's going to grab your attention and keep it. See what I mean? Make your characters have to weather some storms -- and if possible, make those storms snowpocalypses.

Early Spring... oh please, yes!

2011-02-02T07:46:00.000-08:00

So that groundhog didn't see his shadow, predicting an early spring. I, for one, am hoping that a groundhog really can predict the weather, because this so-cold-you-can't-breathe-and-your-hands-get-frostbite-just-from-holding-the-steering-wheel weather we're having? I'm soooo over it. I hope all my friends in the midwest are surviving that blizzard okay! What a crazy winter we've had. Sheesh. I'm ready for some good ole sunshine and warm breezes. (And all you California/Arizona/warm climate dwellers can just keep your smirks to yourself. I'm looking at you Kiersten "I almost couldn't wear capris-pocolypse" White! he he...)

Anyway, the only bright side to it being this cold outside is that I'm perfectly content curled up in my sweatshirt, blankets, and a computer to work on my revision or my WIP. Oh, but wait, I have kids. And I have to go volunteer at KidA's class today, which means I have to drag KidB out to our car (which is frozen solid right now) and brave the air that is so cold there are little crystalline bits of frost just floating around. Fun. Ah, well, the things we do for our kids.

Maybe I'll get to curl up, warm up, and get writing again tonight. One can dream big, right? Time to write and an early spring? That would be heaven right now.

Do you think a groundhog can predict the weather?

What makes you fall in love?

2011-01-31T06:00:00.000-08:00

I'm not talking about with a person in real life (although that could be an interesting discussion), I'm talking about falling in love with characters, a world, a plotline--with a book.

What makes you fall in love with a book or a series? We all know what that's like. The insatiable need to keep reading, to find out what happens, to breathlessly await the kiss, or the epic battle, the triumphant ending... while still wishing you could go slower and savor the wonderful world you've escaped to. It's different for different people, a book that one person just adores might be one someone else didn't like at all.

So what is it for you? What are some of the books at the top of your list? Books you wish you could have the pleasure of rereading as though it were the first time all over again? I'd love to know!

Friday Five

2011-01-28T07:25:00.000-08:00

Phwew, we made it through another week! Here's what's on my mind this week...

1. Trying to "entertain" a kid--aka trying to force him to rest--who has a positive strep test but doesn't feel sick at all (and is really upset he has to stay home from school, because he thinks he's fine) is not very fun. But we survived, and now he's not contagious and he's back at school. Hurray.

2. A good book is a great way to distract yourself from stress. I love getting sucked into a good book.

3. It's hard to write when you are exhausted both physically and mentally, and have a massive headache, and still feel nauseated (because apparently this nausea is never going away with this pregnancy). But those are the times you have to just force yourself to do it. Right?

4. SonB just turned 2 a couple of weeks ago. He's really taking that whole "terrible two's" thing to heart. He's still adorable, and insanely smart and cute, but boy can he be a handful. In related news, I am so in love with the power of Magic Erasers right now that if it weren't a sponge, SHH might be jealous. As it is, he's probably just as in love with it, because now he doesn't have to repaint the hallway walls. Who knew mascara could be so stubborn to get off?

5. Why is it that whenever I clean a part of my house, it never looks clean for longer than maybe an hour or two at the most? Unless it's the middle of the night and everyone is asleep--in which case, it lasts until morning at least. Do you ever feel like, "what's the point?" And the bigger question is, when am I going to be a millionaire so I can hire a maid and write instead of clean? Huh? HUH?! Okay, just kidding about that last part. ;)

What's on your mind this week?