Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I didn't get any new words written last week. I actually got the screen on my old laptop to come up. I don't know how long it'll continue to work, so I used my writing time to get as much stuff as possible that wasn't saved to the cloud transferred over to the extra laptop. I still have a bunch of bookmarks I saved that are research and writing related that I want to bookmark on the extra laptop but I think for the most part everything that is important has been moved or is saved in the cloud. I'm hoping to get at least some writing done this week now that I'm done panicking about losing stuff.

Motivational Quote:  "Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races, one after another." ~ Walter Elliott.  I feel like this quote is so appropriate considering everything that's been happening lately.

What I'm Reading:  I started Story of My Life by Lucy Score on Saturday evening. It's the first book in her new series.  It's a hefty book - the paperback version that I'm reading has 512 pages. 

Random Thoughts:  Today is Somebody's tenth birthday. It doesn't seem like we've had him that long. I've posted pictures below of how tiny he was when we adopted him and a recent picture of how big he is now. 

Photos:

Somebody at 2 months old

  

 

Somebody at almost 10 years old

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  I worked like crazy last week to get the editing done on Coming Home. I'll be sending it to my editor and beta readers on Tuesday. I'll have about 2 weeks to get Christmas things done before they send it back to me with their comments and suggestions. 

 Motivational Quote: "Try not to over-think." ~ Amy Beager  This is always good advice when working on edits or rewrites.

What I'm Reading:  I finished reading The Body in the Backyard by Lucy Score last night. I'm not sure what I'll start reading tonight. I have a stack of 8 books that I borrowed from the library last Wednesday. 

Random Thoughts: I hope everyone that celebrates Thanksgiving has a wonderful holiday with their friends and families. 

Random Photo:

                                            The banana bread I made last week.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  The first draft of Coming Home is done. Whew! I wrote it in 10 weeks. That's the fastest I've ever written a first draft. I will edit it this week. I used a new plotting method which not only helped me write the first draft faster, but also helped me write cleaner so I'm hoping there won't be a lot of revisions or rewriting to be done. 

 Motivational Quote: "I'm always trying to be better. Better, better, and better...in all ways and in everything that I'm doing in my life. And it's not about [being] perfect. It's about [being] better." ~ Evgenia Medvedeva

What I'm Reading:  I started The Body in the Backyard by Lucy Score yesterday afternoon. It's the 4th book in the Riley Thorn mystery series. This isn't a typical mystery or cozy mystery series. It's like a rom-com and a cozy mystery were mixed together resulting in a fun and engaging series. 

Random Thoughts:  I tried a new recipe for chocolate orange swirl bread. It came out well. I think when I make it again, I'll add a touch of orange extract for a bit more orange flavor. The recipe only calls for orange zest and 2 tablespoons of orange juice so you can taste some orange, but it's like a subtle hint. I'm baking banana bread this afternoon because I have two bananas that are a little too ripe to eat as is. 

Random Photo:

                                Here's a photo of the chocolate orange swirl bread

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  Writing is still going well. I managed to get 15k (60 pages) written last week despite a couple of unexpected things popping up. It was touch and go there for a while if I'd meet my self-imposed deadline of having 150 pages written by the end of last week, but I did it (barely. I had to write the last 6 pages on Saturday to hit the 150 page mark.)

Motivational Quote:  "Farmers don't rush their harvest--why should we? Plant your seeds, be patient..." ~ Joel Leon

What I'm Reading:  I started reading Holding on to Chaos by Lucy Score yesterday afternoon. While this is the fifth book in the Blue Moon series, it also reads as a stand alone. I haven't read any of the previous books and I'm not feeling lost. This is an "insta-love" story which are not usually my cup of tea, but I am liking it so far. (I'm only a third of the way through the book.)

Random Things:  I made my first batch of cookies for the fall season. I don't bake from late May until early October because of the heat and high humidity that we have in the summer months. The cookies are a cross between a gingerbread cookie and a gingersnap. It was a new recipe for me. They're good but if I want a ginger based cookie in the future, I'm going to stick to my tried and true gingerbread chocolate chip cookie recipe. 

Random Photo:

                              Here's a picture of the Ginger cookies I made on Sunday.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  The book is going well. I wrote 12,500 new words last week. I should have no problem hitting my goal of 40k by the end of the month. I'm also working through the edits/changes suggested by my editor. I've been able to send her each week's pages every Sunday so she's basically editing it as I'm writing it. 

Motivational Quote:  "Find the good. It's all around you. Find it, showcase it, and you'll start believing in it." ~ Jesse Owens

What I'm Reading:  I'm reading Blast From The Past by Lucy Score. It's the third book in the Riley Thorn series. It's a humorous mystery type series though sometimes it seems like the shenanigans of the characters overshadow the mystery part of the story. 

Random Thoughts:  I thought I'd give an update on my sweet potato vine. It was growing so fast, I had to move it to a bigger pot already. The vine grew so tall, I put it out on my back porch and tied string round the porch railing and support post for the vine to twine around. I'm hoping I'll get at least a couple of blossoms soon. 

Random Photo:

                         The sweet potato vine in its new home on the back porch.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  Had a pretty good writing week last week. I need to contact my cover artist to get on her schedule for the cover of Caine's book. I've already booked my editor so I need to get my butt in gear to make sure the manuscript is ready for her by the time I'm supposed to send it to her.

Motivational Quote: "Be faithful in small things because it is in them your strength lies." ~ Mother Teresa

What I'm Reading: I'll be starting Pretend You're Mine by Lucy Score tonight. 

Random Thoughts: I'm trying to decide if I want to cut my hair this summer. It's nearly to my waist and I almost always wear it tied up in the warm weather so why not get it cut shorter. I can't seem to make up my mind - one day I'm going to cut it, the next day I'm not going to cut it. I don't have any real reason to hurry to make a decision since it's been cool and rainy lately. 

Random Photo: 

                          I saw this on Facebook and it really resonated with me

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  Still working on Caine's story. I didn't meet my Camp NaNoWriMo goal, but I did write 20k in April so I'm okay with not meeting the goal. I wasn't too far off considering I had some unexpected things crop up. 

Motivational Quote:  I'm repeating the quote from a couple of weeks ago since I have a lot going on this week and am not sure how much writing I'm going to get done. The quote is a good reminder that some words written is better than no words written. "Always look for the thing you CAN do, with the energy and focus you DO have. Little wins pay the way for bigger wins. 1% beats 0%." ~ Glenn Patrick Doyle  

What I'm Reading:  I started Rock Bottom Girl by Lucy Score this past weekend. I'm liking it so far, but I'm only a few chapters into the book.

Random Thoughts: Ugh! Can I complain about the weather? I try not to, but we've had so much rain lately. We had more rain in the month of April than we've had in years. Unfortunately, May looks like it's going to be the same way. I'm hoping a change in the weather pattern will move all the rain out of my area for at least the next few days. 

Random Photo:

                         Mrs. Green intently watching the birds outside the window.

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related:  Rough writing week last week. So many unexpected things popped up eating into my writing time. I'm planning to get back on track this week and hopefully getting some extra pages in to make up for last week's lack of pages.

Motivational Quote: "This day...is too dear with its hopes and invitations to waste a moment on the rotten yesterdays." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

What I'm Reading:  I started reading Things We Left Behind by Lucy Score yesterday afternoon. It's the third and (I believe) final book in the Knockemout Series.

Random Thoughts:  Even though we've had a mild winter (so far), I'm looking forward to spring. I have so many things I want to plan and do once the winter weather is definitely gone. 

Random Photo:

                                 Mrs. Green and Somebody sharing the sofa.
 

Monday Check In

Last week...

Writing Related: Another good writing week last week. I also fit in a writing related class that I hope will help with future releases.

Motivational Quote:  "Where you are today is a result of your thought of yesterday." ~ Halima Musa

What I'm Reading: I picked up two books from the library on Friday. One is Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score. I've never read anything by Ms. Score but I've heard great things about the book. I have to admit I'm a little wary of starting it. The book has 552 pages. I didn't realize it was that long. My concern is I don't have a lot of free time to read and am worried I might not be able to finish it before it's due to be returned to the library. The second book is Atomic Habits by James Clear. I'm trying to build better habits this year and hope this book might help me achieve that.

Random Thoughts:  I eat a snack after dinner two or three times a week. I have the snack even if I'm not hungry. It's become a habit that I don't need to be doing. One of the ways I'm trying to break the habit is by crocheting in the evenings while I'm spending time with my mom or watching TV. If my hands are busy, I'm hoping it'll keep me from needing the snack. I also won't want to eat anything while working on a project so nothing happens to it. Hopefully, I'll break the habit and end up with a new throw blanket for the sofa in the process.  

Random Photo: 

                          Mrs. Green keeping me company as I write Caine's book.