Category: Uncategorized

  • Thursday 13 – 13 Things On My Mind

    1. When I type that phrase, “On My Mind,” I always thinks of David Eddings’ books. “Mind? Mind? Islena doesn’t have a mind!”

    2. My upcoming writing conference that my writing group is hosting. It’s in two weeks! ~faints~

    3. I finally updated my craft blog! I hadn’t touched the poor thing since February. I made a Spring Bag!

    4. And a Camera Bag! I’m really proud of the camera bag, because I designed it myself!

    5. I just posted Chapter 11 of New World Order on Taurus and Taurus. The story is fully plotted out into a three book arc, and we’ll keep this first trilogy on the public (free) blog.

    6. I attended Spring Fling from Chicago North’s chapter of the RWA.

    7. At the Spring Fling, I pitched Burning Bright to Managing Editor Lindsey Faber of Samhain Publishing.

    8. She wants to see it! ~faints~

    9. ~gets up~ She wants to see it! ~faints~

    10. Pitching isn’t NEARLY as intimidating as I thought it was. ~faints again~

    11. Fainting hurts if you miss the floor and hit the desk instead.

    12. One does not die for pitching to an editor for the first time. Who knew?

    13. I’M SENDING A MANUSCRIPT OF A FULL LENGTH NOVEL TO A PUBLISHER! FOR REALS!

    ~faints~

  • New Stuff!

    Here is Chapter 11 of New World Order, for your reading pleasure.

    And I\’m blogging about two new knitting projects at Knoontime Knitting today! One is a Spring Bag and the second is a Camera Bag. Enjoy!

  • Camera Bag

    So, I sez to my friend, Friend, what kind of a bag would you like? And she sez to me, she sez, Well, I’d like a camera bag.

    In camo.

    …

    Have I mentioned before that I HATE camo?

    I must have mentioned this.

    In fact, my friend, she started giggling because we had talked, at length, on just this very topic the day before while hiking. I sez to my friend, Friend, do you have a hat I could borrow for this here desert hiking in the sun? And she sez to me, she sez, sure! Here you go!

    It’s camo.

    …

    Have I mentioned before that I HATE camo?

    So this bag. Well, it’s a camera bag, for a wee little bitty camera of a thing. So I knitted a swatch, and I knitted a sock, and I closed the sock with the three needle bind off, and I picked up the gusset for the lid, and I knitted the lid.

    I even did some lace, but you can’t really see. The end is sort of diagonal, which I don’t like much, so I think I’ll do another one. And I want to add a strap. But I finished the bag. Poof!

    In camo.

    …

    Have I mentioned before that I HATE camo?

    \"\"

    It\’s quite roomy inside. I showed this picture to my friend, and she said it looks like a little mouth. Which of course makes me want to make a version of the bag with ears and teeth…

    \"\"

    This is the inside of the cover. There\’s actually a small lace pattern in the triangle that forms the flap, but you can\’t see it since the yarn is so dark.

    \"\"

    This is with the flap closed. The line of the flap at the point of the triangle is angled down and to the right, which I don\’t like; I want it to be square. What I think I\’ll do is start the next bag from this point, rather than end here, and then cast on the extra stitches for the body and go from there.

    \"\"

    Even with white in the background, you can\’t see the lace. It\’s a pity, but a good lesson: on dark yarn, use a textural pattern and not lace to see it – or use bigger needles (or block the heck out of it).

    \"\"

    This is how it looks when I hold it straight, but I\’m still not really happy with the closure. I do want to find a cool wooden button to use for the clasp, and I may make a prototype with a button since it will be used in the field on the fly.

    \"\"

    And here is the back in all its glory. I did the top part in a garter rib pattern that actually looks quite nice in this yarn; I may do the whole thing next time in that stitch for added padding against the camera body.

    Another thought I have is to do a lining, so that there\’s extra padding to protect the camera – I just don\’t want the bag to be too bulky. We shall see.

  • Spring Bag

    I’m on a kick to make more gift bags. I found a cool overdye at Michael’s, and I like the colors. I think it looks like Spring or Ostara.

    I did the top as straight knitting, but I used a knitted cast on instead of long tail. I like the way it comes out, since you can’t really see the edge and it looks very neat and clean. It’s looser than long tail, too, which is nice; although when working that first row off the cast on row it sometimes is tight.

    \"\"

    I used a slip-stitch pattern from Barbara Walker’s stitch dictionary, A First Treasury of Knitting Patterns which has been re-released by Schoolhouse Press. I actually didn’t like the way it looked with this yarn, which surprised me. I have found it to be pretty on some overdyes, whereas on others it looks flat and muddy – which I thought it did, here.

    \"\"

    I switched back to plain knitting for the next segment, and then experimented with a Garter Rib. I tried doing the plain rows by switching between knit and purl by row for the first segment, then doing purl every straight row for the final segment.

    \"\"

    It wasn’t until I finished and turned the bag inside out to seam it that I realized my error – I did the stitch inside-out!

    \"\"

    I like the way it turned out, but for the next bag with this yarn I’ll do the garter rib for the whole thing and see how that looks. I used the three needle bind of for the end and made a 3-stitch i-cord for the cord. On the whole, I like how it looked.

    The yarn is worsted-weight, and I used a size 7 needle, which is much smaller than I’d usually use for this yarn thickness. The resultant fabric is quite dense, which I like for the purpose of the gift bag.

    \"\"

  • Thursday 13 – 13 Reasons to Attend Our Conference

    My local writing group, Evanston Writers Workshop, is having our First Annual Conference! I’m so excited. Here are thirteen reasons by YOU should attend the conference, if you’re anywhere near the Chicagoland area (and being on planet Earth counts as ‘near’…)

    1. It’s my writing group! (Duh…)

    2. MaryJanice Davidson is our Keynote Speaker! She’s a multiple best-selling author on BOTH the coveted New York Times AND USA Today lists, and has written a whopping 66 books to date! I cannot wait to see this woman speak. She’s funny, down-to-earth, and incredibly knowledgeable.

    3. It’s at the Winnetka Community House, one of the most gorgeous venues in the area. Check out their website for pictures and more information. I almost fainted when Debbie said we are having the event there. I’d go just to see the place!

    4. Author Sherrill Bodine. She knows fashion (heck, she IS fashionable!!), she’s funny, and she knows a heckuvalot!

    5. Crime novelist and short story author, Libby Hellmann. Past national president of Sisters in Crime, this lady knows a LOT about mystery and crime writing, as well as public speaking and video production.

    6. Author Jamie Freveletti, published with Harper Collins. Her debut thriller, Running from the Devil (HarperCollins/ William Morrow), was released in May, 2009, was chosen as a “Notable Book” by the Independent Booksellers of America and has been nominated as a “Best First Novel” by the International Thriller Writers. It has been translated into three languages and was an international bestseller. Her second novel, Running Dark, will be released in June, 2010.

    7. Cuz I said so! (Just had ta slip that in there…)

    8. Me! No, really! I’ll be giving a couple presentations, including Sustaining the Creative Process, How to Critique Effectively, and How to Set Up a Blog. I even have a spiffy bio on the conference website! (I feel all official!!)

    9. It’s $100 for sixteen hours of panels, workshops, The Prompt Pit, and face-time with our guest speakers! Saturday and Sunday, 9-5 both days, May 15 and 16, 2010. BE THERE!

    10. Our panels will include: Agent and Editor panel; Genre author panels (several); Creatures, supernatural and sci-fi; and a Children\’s author panel.

    11. Our conference website is awesome! Designed by our very own Debbie Cairo, it’s got all sorts of cool stuff. Check it out!

    12. Publicist Dana Kaye. Learn about the art of publicity from Chicago’s very own expert! Look out, she’s a writer too, so this fine lady understands your pain!

    13. Did I mention, this is our writing group? The Evanston Writers Workshop started in 2007 and is now over 300 strong – and growing! We meet weekly on Wednesdays at the Evanston Barnes and Noble at 7:00 P.M., and we have workshops and conferences and will be the next force to stop Global Warming!

    Hmm. Maybe I should look up “hyperbole?”

    Nah.

  • Our First Ever Writing Conference!

    My in-person writing group, the Evanston Writers Workshop, is holding our first-ever writing conference! I\’m so excited, I can\’t see straight. Here\’s some more information:

    We want YOU!

    …to attend our First Annual Writing Conference, of course! You asked for it, and we listened. We have a plethora of panels (and found our thesaurus to boot!), but today I want to highlight our Keynote Speaker: Ms. MaryJanice Davidson. You NEED to hear her speak!

    Here\’s why:

    She\’s more fun than a barrel of monkeys! A multiple best-selling author on both the prestigious (and coveted) New York Times AND USA Today Bestseller lists, she really knows the business of publishing from the inside. From the trenches, say! (And our conference theme IS: In the Trenches with the Writer!)

    Prolific, funny, and down-to-earth, we have asked MaryJanice to talk to us about the publishing business, keeping the momentum going once you finish one or two novels and are trying to figure out \”what next,\” and her in-general thoughts she would have loved to have someone like her share back when she was first starting out.

    She has written a prodigious 66 books so far! Here\’s the list, from her website:
    1. By Any Other Name (1998)
    2. Adventures of the Teen Furies (1998)
    3. Dying for Ice Cream (1999) (ebook)
    4. Secrets 6 (2000) (Love’s Prisoner)
    5. Reunions (Too Good To Be True) (2000) (under the name Janice Pohl)
    6. Escape The Slush Pile (non-fiction self-help) ebook 2001
    7. Thief of Hearts (2001)
    8. Naughty or Nice (2001) (Santa Claws, a Wyndham Werewolf Story)
    Was originally released as “Nicely Naughty” as an e-book that is no longer available
    9. Chicken Soup for the Teacher’s Soul (What I Learned in Spite of Myself)
    10. Undead & Unwed (2002)
    11. Canis Royal: Bridefight (2002)(e-book)
    12. Love Lies (2002) (e-book)
    13. Secrets 8 (2002) (Jared’s Wolf)
    14. Lighthearted Lust (2003) (There’s No Such Thing as a Werewolf) (e-book)
    15. Under Cover (2003)
    16. Beggarman, Thief (2004)(e-book)
    17. Cravings (2004) (Dead Girls Don’t Dance)
    18. Forgotten Wishes (2004) (Love’s Tender Fury)(e-book)
    19. Perfect for the Beach (2004) (My Thief)
    20. How to Be a Wicked Woman (2004) (The Wicked Witch of the West Side)
    21. Merry Christmas, Baby (2004) (Undercover Claus)
    22. Men at Work (2004) (The Fixer-Upper)
    23. Undead & Unemployed (2004)
    24. The Royal Treatment (2004)
    25. Bad Boys with Expensive Toys (2004) (The World is Too Darned Big)
    26. Bewitched, Bothered, and BeVampyred (2005) (Night Mares)
    27. Derik’s Bane (2005)
    28. Hello, Gorgeous! (2005)
    29. The Royal Pain (2005)
    30. Undead & Unappreciated (2005)
    31. Undead & Unreturnable (2005)
    32. Betsy the Vampire Queen (2005) (first 4 Betsy books combined)
    33. Jennifer Scales and the Ancient Furnace (2005)
    34. Romance at the Edge: In Other Worlds (2005) (Beggarman, Thief)
    35. Charming the Snake (2005) (Savage Scavenge)
    36. Kick Ass (2005) (the Incredible Misadventures of Boo & the Boy Blunder)
    37. Bite (2005) (Biting in Plain Sight)
    38. Really Unusual Bad Boys (2005) (Bridefight, Mating Season, & Groomfight)
    39. Wicked Women Whodunit (2005) (Ten Little Idiots)
    40. Sleeping with the Fishes (2006)
    41. Jennifer Scales and the Messenger of Light (2006)
    42. Undead & Unpopular (2006)
    43. Drop Dead Gorgeous (2006)
    44. Mysteria (2006) (Alone Wolf)
    a. Fangs Again (2006) never got published
    45. Surf’s Up (2006) (Paradise Bossed)
    46. Valentine’s Day is Killing Me (2006) (Cuffs and Coffee Breaks)
    47. Dead & Loving It (2006) (Santa Claws, Monster Love, There’s No Such Thing as a Werewolf, & A Fiend in Need)
    48. Swimming Without a Net (2007)
    49. The Silver Moon Elm (2007)
    50. The Royal Mess (2007)
    51. Undead & Uneasy (2007)
    52. Doing It Right (2007)
    53. Demon’s Delight (2007) (Witch Way)
    54. No Rest for the Witches (2007) (Majicka)
    55. Over the Moon (2007) (Driftwood)
    56. Mysteria Lane (2007) (Disdaining Trouble)
    57. Fish Out of Water (2008)
    58. Undead & Unworthy (2008)
    59. Dead Over Heels (2008) (Undead & Wed: A Honeymoon Story, Survivors, & Speed Dating, Werewolf Style Or, Ow, I Think You Broke The Bone
    60. Betsy: Bride of the Vampire (Undead 5-7; Dead & Loving It) (2008)
    61. Seraph of Sorrow (2009)
    62. Undead & Unwelcome (2009)
    63. Faeries Gone Wild (2009) (Tall, Dark and Not So Faery)
    64. Undead & Unfinished – to be released July 6, 2010
    65. Rise of the Poison Moon – to be released July 27, 2010
    66. Me, Myself, and Why – to be released September 2010

    For more information on MaryJanice, check out her awesome website.

    And to meet MaryJanice in person, and hear all about her writing process, sign up for the conference! What are you waiting for? Space is limited. Come visit the conference website today! 10% discount for EWW members.

  • Wiley Wednesday: A Tool to Tame Entropy

    I\’m blogging at the Writers Retreat Blog today on entropy and productivity. Stop on by!

  • Thursday 13: March 18, 2010

    I drove in today. This might not sound unusual, but I usually take the train, except for Fridays when I drive with my husband.

    You’ll note, those of you paying attention, that today is not Friday.

    Nope. Not one bit. So here I am, or at any rate, there I was, driving all by myself through the wilds of traffic, when it occurred to me: a) I shouldn’t drive PC (pre-coffee), b) I really want a coffee RIGHT NOW THANK YOU, c) honking my horn does not make coffee magically appear (but it pisses off the prick in the SUV behind me so that’s cool, and d) there are THIRTEEN REASONS WHY I LIKE CHICAGO MASS TRANSIT!

    In no particular order:

    1. When the bus driver honks, coffee doesn’t appear either. BUT, it does mean that I don’t have to pay attention to whatever it is that she’s honking about.

    2. My commute, from my house to my office, is between sixty and ninety minutes. This gives me time to write and knit.

    3. I’ve made all sorts of cool stuff on the train. Right now, I’m working on a lace shawl and my Master Knitter homework.

    4. I love my AlphaSmart 2000 because I can sit it on my lap and type away. On a one day commute, I can get up to ten pages of material, between 2,000 and 3,000 words.

    5. It’s nice to get to work without road rage. (I don’t GET road rage, mind you. That’s what the horn is for.)

    6. I get a lot more exercise. I wear a pedometer, and average between five and seven-and-a-half miles of walking daily. The larger numbers happen when I walk to the farther bus stop, that lets me off a mile and some-odd from my house. Walking calms me down, and lets me work out stuff in my mind. It’s strange, but I’ve noticed it helps to slow down if you want to speed up. Zen? Yeah. But hey. It works.

    7. Here’s a more serious one. (Yes, I can be serious.) It’s like going through a sort of metaphysical buffer between work and home to take transit. Because it’s an enforced quiet time with me, myself, and three million of my closest friends, I get two hours a day of chill time. It turns out, this is good for my psyche.

    8. It works better for my psyche to NEVER EVER EVER FORGET MY IPOD. Jus’ sayin’. Cell yell? Don’t be that person.

    9. If you do run into that person, you can bury them by that other one, over there. ~points~

    10. Is there a statute of limitations on putting the cell yeller out of my misery? o.O…

    11. It’s good for the environment. Yeah, yeah, I know that’s the new black. But really, it is. I used to run a transportation reduction program when I was fresh out of college, so do you WANT a lecture on airborne particulates?

    12. It slows down my day. This may sound odd, but in today’s day and age, I really do need it. If I drive very day, I find I feel rushed. If I take transit, I don’t. It’s as though that enforced slow time, one hour in the morning and one at night, help keep me calm.

    13. I can do my morning pages in the morning on the bus and train. This keeps me sane.

  • New World Order, Chapter 8

    Chapter 8 of New World Order, \”In Plain Sight\”, is posted. Enjoy!

  • Thursday 13: Plants!

    GARDENING! It’s nearly Spring, and I can’t wait to get back into the garden! Of course, I have to clean up the doggie nuisances that she buried in the snow (!) and that are thawing out – ew. Then I have to get rid of a rusty chair, tie up my yew bushes, and get some more plants to put in the ground. Plant it green side up. Plant it green side up. Plant it green side up.

    So, what shall I plant green side up?

    1. Cherry tomatoes

    2. Pear tomatoes

    3. Roma tomatoes (sensing a theme?)

    4. Green bell peppers

    5. Some sweet peppers of some other kind, and maybe a hot plant for my husband

    6. Green chard

    7. Ruby or rainbow chard

    8. Garlic

    9. Onions

    10. Genovese basil

    11. Marjoram or oregano

    12. Opal basil

    13. Snap dragons

    What? I know I can’t eat them, but they’re my favorite flower next to gladiolus! I live in the city and have no back yard. We installed a five by ten above-ground planter a few years ago and I do French intensive gardening. It works for me. Can’t wait to have some land and a BIG garden! Pumpkins, squash, potatoes, an orchard… But for now, mine your acre of diamonds.

    Dig it!

  • Thursday 13: February 18th, 13 Pretty Things

    Thursday 13 – February 18, 2010

    Today is Thursday.

    Not very inspired, but working at it. So, 13 pretty things:

    1. Emeralds.

    2. Puppies.

    3. Kittens.

    4. Ladies and Gentlemen all dressed up.

    5. Water lilies.

    6. Great herons congregating (which I’ve only seen once, in Horicon Marsh, Wisconsin).

    7. Horicon Marsh, Wisconsin. (~grin~)

    8. Mount Shasta, California.

    9. My husband. (Aww.) (But srsly.)

    10. My stepson. (Aww.) (But srsly.)

    11. My paycheck. It helps me pay the rent and afford fun things.

    12. Chocolate.

    13. Waking up. (Well, maybe not waking up, but the FACT that one is able to wake up is pretty darned awesome.)

  • Thursday 13 – February 11, 2010: 13 Things I Learned From my Outward Bound Expedition

    Today is Thursday. As I stared out the train window this morning, noodling on things to write for TT, I found myself musing about the snow. So, my TT today is about what I learned, camping in harsher weather even than today\’s Chicago day.

    1. If you write it and share it, people respond. Outward Bound International posted my alumni story on their website!

    2. I can survive zero degree weather without a tent.

    3 The heat triangle, made up of layered clothing, movement, and food, is what keeps you alive in extreme cold.

    4. There are few bugs in the Boundary Waters in winter. For this I am grateful.

    5. You need a lot more calories when you’re on the ice for 6 days, traveling 35 miles through ice and snow on cross country skis and a dog sled.

    6. No one rests on a dog sled. Those fancy seated sleds they use on the silver screen? Pansies. We helped push our sled – the front one weighed 550 pounds, and the rear one 350!

    7. I never knew I could smell like that. Exertion, no showers, 7 days = stinkeh Nooneh!

    8 The dogs? Yeah, they don’t bathe either.

    9. One of the dogs ate a raven out of the sky.

    No, I’m not kidding. The dogs are fed raw meat that’s been frozen, with boiling water poured over it to make a kind of stew. This is so they get water, since they genetically won’t drink (they live in frozen areas like Alaska and Antarctica, so they don’t react to water like a pet dog would). The ravens, which are ginormous, want the meat too and dive-bomb the dogs. The ravens know exactly where the edges of the chain allow the dog to get to. One decided to dive-bomb and peck one of the dogs as she slept on her roof. Thwap. Thwap. Thwap.

    CRUNCH!

    No more raven.

    Nuff said.

    9. I can camp by myself on the ice overnight, and cut down my own tree. Hoo-rah!

    10. I didn’t write the whole time I was out there. I actually found that the writing pulled me out of the moment, and that I wanted to make sure I stayed present. Instead of writing, I hung out and relaxed when we weren’t moving around. It felt good.

    11. It’s hard to explain my reality to others, even ones on expedition with one.

    12. Snow in Chicago is no sweat after camping in colder and more icy weather.

    13. Clearwater Lake is God’s Country. I wish I could write well enough to do it justice.