I wanted to pop in and wish everyone a wonderful Labour Day. I’ve been very busy this weekend. Between painting, cleaning and writing, I’m ready for a vacation LOL!
Time for a rest. 
Archive for the 'Life' Category
Page 3 of 21
I’m alive!! And mostly sane. 
The trip home was fantastic. The kids and the puppy survived the car drive with little to no issues. Hubby and myself enjoyed the break, though we’re both running around mad today trying to get things organized. Once I have a few minutes to sit, I’ll post some of the pictures we took while visiting beautiful New Brunswick Canada.
But first…laundry!!
*groan*
Well folks, I’m not sure if hubby and I are brave or insane. We are getting ready for our family vacation, which starts on Saturday. It will take us the next two days to prepare for the drive.
I hear you asking, “Why so long, Christine?” Excellent question! You see we need all the prep time because we are driving from Ontario to New Brunswick. Now if you put this into Mapquest, it tells you that it will take 16 hours to complete this insanity. This (naturally) ignores the idea of traffic, or the fact I will have two kids and a dog in the car. Hubby and I are anticipating it will take us between 18-20 hours with stops and slow downs.
In the car.
With two kids AND a puppy.
Yes, yes, I hear your laughter now. But we are strong! We are prepared (or will by tomorrow night)! I have Gravol for the kids…and have figured out that we can give it to Jack too (he’s the dog, not my husband). We have the laptop and an adapter ready to go so the kids can watch Smallville (Superman saves the day AGAIN!), and I’ll have a good assortment of music to listen to while I drive.
And yes, I’ll do most of the driving. I’m a terrible passenger, so it’s less stressful on hubby if I just drive.
So, I won’t be on my blog for two weeks, but I will be bugging everyone on Twitter.
Wish me luck!
No one claimed being any type of artist was easy. For the most part, friends and family don’t get what you do (even the really supportive ones), you are constantly battling self doubt, only to put your work out there and pray someone likes it. Those of us who do it have our own reasons for what drives us on. Sometimes, those reasons get a bit muddy.
I really love being a writer–but it is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I’ve never questioned my own ability to accomplish what I set out to do in my life. I wanted to write a book. I wanted to be published. I did and I am. Next on my list, I want to have an agent and be published with a NY house. I will…only a matter of time. But I’m impatient with myself. Honestly, it’s one of my greatest faults.
Why am I rambling on about all this? No, I’m not trying to toot my own horn, looking for sympathy, or prove I’m some sort of uber-awesome person. To be honest, I’m finding myself slipping. My writer self has been going through some soul searching recently. I’ve been asking myself some questions (what do I hope to accomplish? how am I going to get there?) and I’ve come to the realization that I’ve lost sight of why I wanted to be a writer in the first place.
I love telling stories. I like making shit up and getting a reaction out of people. If you’ve ever met me, you know I’m even worse in person. That drive to entertain is something very deeply ingrained in me.
Recently, I’ve lost sight of that.
I’ve been finding myself drifting. I’m more concerned with writing to the market. While that’s important, it can also be stifling. While I want to advance my career, I need to be true to myself. This is the reason I haven’t been able to do much recently. I’ve been feeling trapped as a writer–not quite good enough to go in one direction, but wanting a new challenge.
So, I’ve come over to my blog and am giving myself an opportunity to get all these thoughts out of my head and onto the virtual paper. I need to look at them and figure out what I need to do to move forward. I know a lot of you out there who read my blog are also writers. I’m asking for your advice as well. How do you keep yourself going and focused?
My motivation has slipped, but it’ not gone.
It really is funny to go back and read something you’ve written quite some time ago. It’s my voice, but not really. I’ve changed a lot over the past two years, and I hope its all for the better. That said, it can be really hard for me to go back and make edits to a story, knowing there is a problem with the voice, but not seeing why.
Thank god for critique partners! *hugs JK and Amy*
The good news, is that I’m almost done the edits I wanted for this submission to Spice Briefs. I think I need to add some more sex to it (because you can never go wrong with more sex), and then out the door it will go! This is my first time submitting to Spice, so I’m curious to see what will happen. This might not be the right story for them, but I’m excited to give it a go.
Once this one is done, I’ll be going back to my WIP for a while. It’s an urban paranormal, and very different from anything else I’ve ever written. If I actually sell this one, I might have to consider a different pen name. There’s no sex! Shocking, I know.
I really want to try and tie up loose ends over the next week and a bit before I go away on vacation. It’s been a while since we’ve been home, and I’m looking forward to spending time with my family.
I hope everyone is having a great week so far.
HUGS!
Happy Canada Day! There is something fantastic about having a day off in the middle of the week. Not only did I get to listenn to the new radio play Torchwood: Asylum on BBC4 Radio, but I’ll be heading out for some festivities soon. When we get home there will be a BBQ and wine – good times.
And for your listening entertainment, this little video was Twittered by Leah Braemel. Silly thing has been stuck in my head for DAYS now. Enjoy!
I discovered long ago I am motivated by check lists. Yes, I’m one of those crazy people who will put things on a list just so I can cross it off. Gives me a sense of accomplishment. Like most people, if I have to keep track of things then I’m less likely to cheat, be that on a diet, exercise or writing.
Yesterday, I decided to start what I’m affectionately calling “Christine’s A Slacker” journal. Starting yesterday, I’m writing down on each page what I’ve eaten, what I’ve done for exercise and how much I’ve written. Nothing fancy, but it’s helping me fit thing into my busy life.
It must be working because I managed to write over 2k on my WIP, didn’t go crazy when hubby took us out to a restaurant last night, and even managed to squeeze a walk in despite the crazy heat. I’ll do my best to keep it up, if for no other reason than it will help keep track of my writing.
Summer is always a challenge for me when it comes to motivation. The weather is so nice, why would I want to be inside! My WIP is keeping my focus though, and I’m anxious to keep the pace moving forward.
On a personal note, our crazy weekend was fantastic! Little one had a great birthday, Father’s day was fun with a BBQ and good friends, and our anniversary was lovely. Now it’s back to reality and hard work.
I hope you are all having a great week so far.
What a day…and it’s only 6:30 am so far! I can’t believe it, but today is my youngest daughter’s eighth birthday. Of course, she was so excited she got up at 6:15 am and came down to see me. Right now hubby is making her a special breakfast. This afternoon we are taking her and seven other kids to a children’s game/party centre. It’s kind of like Chuck E Cheese, but not commercial…and really big indoor slides. I can’t wait!
As most of you know, tomorrow is Father’s day. That means it will be my turn to make breakfast and treat the man. We are going to a BBQ with some friends, which will be a riot. Hubby deserves to be pampered, so I’ll probably go get him a nice steak.
Monday is out wedding anniversary. We’ve been together for twenty years, but have been married for thirteen. We met when I was fourteen, got engaged when I was eighteen and married at twenty-one. Been an awesome time ever since.
Speaking of wedding invitations…over at Twitter, a posting came up for the most awesome wedding invitation ever!!! You have to check this out hehehe.
I’ll be around here and there over the next few days, but not very much. I hope you all have a fantastic few days.
*does a snoopy dance*
It’s a beautiful day today. The sun is out, the weather is warm, and I’ve had ice cream. Well, it was actually a fruit bar…but still good!
For the first time in several weeks I feel like I can relax and take a breath. It’s a feeling I’m going to hold on to for the rest of the weekend.
I wish everyone a fantastic weekend.
I can’t believe it’s June. Really, I was totally stunned when I had to flip my calendar today and had June 1st staring me in the face (well, it’s actually Gareth David-Lloyd staring at me from my Torchwood calendar ). Where did the year go?? So much has been happening in the past few months, it’s hard to keep up with it all.
In six months I’ve seen the release of All Bottled Up (my first Samhain book), finished and sold The Bond That Saves Us, had my first print release with The Bond That Saves Us, with two more coming this year. I’ve branched out with my writing and have finished book one and half of book two in a new paranormal series. I’ve also dove into a fantastic new idea for an urban paranormal. This is my first attempt at a non-romance and I’m having a blast!
I was fortunate enough to make it to Romantic Times in Orlando this year and had an amazing time. It was humbling to be at the book signing and have someone say they loved my writing. It was the most amazing feeling in the world!
Who knows what will happen in the next six months. I’m going to keep writing as long as there is someone there to enjoy reading it. I want to thank everyone who has been with me this far, and I hope we’ll have fun in the second half of 2009!
*does a snoopy dance*
Recent Comments