magick musings…

“A sense of humor is just common sense dancing .”~William James
… do it!

I broke the 10,000 word mark on my new WIP today!

I decided that the weekend was not going to end until I did exactly that. And since Monday is going to be busy, (and technically not part of the weekend) I got butt in chair and hands on that keyboard and got’er done.

I can still finish it by June 1 if I stay on course.

Our new guest bedroom furniture was delivered this weekend. It rocks and I am very happy with it. We bought new lamps for the nightstands and now the only thing left to complete that room is window treatments and artwork. Now we’re ready for that special company!!!

We had a very busy and productive weekend. I hate the way Sundays go so fast. Grocery shopping, laundry, gardening, writing, cleaning house. Before we knew it, it was 8:00 pm and hadn’t had dinner yet. GW had bought some talapia so we fried some up and made some veggies go with it and it was an easy meal. I know, I know, we should have grilled the fish, but we were both in the mood for fried.

As soon as the weather gets better, I am going to learn out to cook on our gas grill. Don’t know the first thing about it, but I bet I can learn.

~Sandy

…we ran errands. And ran errands. And ran errands.

But we finally found the rugs we wanted for both the foyer and the family room. And they rock! They are the perfect colors and size and it is amazing how they bring warmth to the rooms. Still have so many other things we want to do but it takes time and lots of work. And we want to make sure we get it how we want it.

Then we shopped around and found the bedroom furniture for the guest bedroom. They now make ‘media chests’ which matches the furniture so you can put a television and DVD players and such on which makes it better than the equipment taking up room on a dresser. I loved that idea! I like a place for everything and everything in its place.

The furniture had to be ordered, of course, so it is the same ole hurry up and wait. But I have patience.

Most of the time 🙂

We trucked to Home Depot and then to Sam’s Club to stock up on some items we were out of and by then we had worked up an appetite (shopping makes you hungry) so went to eat a late lunch. We had a gift card to On The Border so we pigged out on fajitas and veggies and rice and beans. Yum! We were good, though, and didn’t do dessert.

I did get some writing in. That’s important. I was having some trouble getting started on the chapter I am working on. I wasn’t quite sure where to begin it. Until that little birdie reminded me to just START! It can always be revised. But like everything else, I want it to be picture perfect the first time.

Today it is grocery shopping and then writing. I didn’t quite make my word goal this week, but still have to today to make up for it.

Have a great Sunday!

~Sandy

I have a new goal!

…thanks to Geri for sending me the info on the call for anthology submissions for Samhain.

Theme: Angels! And, just take a wild guess at what I am working on at the present time? Yep, you got it!

And it’s not due until November 1!

Okay, here’s the plan:

By Monday, June 13 – have storyline finished.

By September 30, have 30,000 words completed.

October 31 – have critiques and revisons done.

November 1 – send that completed, polished puppy off to the publisher.

I can do it…I can do it…

Gasp! It feels just as scary to do this as it was to do my Faerie story.

I can do it…I can do it…

On another note, hope everyone had a wonderful fourth of July. Was busy in the morning, but that afternoon feasted on GW’s ribs and then rolled ourselves over to The Chair for an evening of reading, watching fireworks on TV, talking, and laughing. Was too hot to trek outdoors to play for anything more than a late evening stroll around the neighborhood on Sunday after running errands such as grocery shopping and, of course, a quick visit to one of our favorite tool shops and then on to the mall for a few things I needed. I got an urge to buy The Four Seasons Greatest Hits (Franki Valli NOT Uvaldi like Brenda first thought, LOL which I am still not sure who that is) to add to my iPod and now I have a rockin’ folder with Oldie but Goodies that has approximately 115 songs ranging from the 50’s to the 80’s. I have over 900 songs total on my iPod and I love it, love it, love it!

Just give me my iPod and my netbook and I can stay out of trouble for hours. Most of the time.

Looks like time to eat dinner. BTW, the roasted chicken was fab last week! And very healthy. I gave the recipe to a friend and she also said her family loved it.

Stay cool!

~Sandy

Me panicked: Hey, the WiFi on my netbook is not working!

GW calmly: Why not?

Me panicked: I don’t know why not. It was working a minute ago.

GW calmly: Reboot it.

Me panicked: I DID! And it’s still not working. I have to have it. It HAS to work! What’s wrong with it???

GW calmly: I don’t know. What did you do?

Me panicked: I didn’t DO anything! It just stopped working. One minute I was on a website and then it stopped working. I can’t get on ANY of the websites I need to be on. I NEED to have internet access.

GW calmly: Why? The netbook was strictly for writing on.

Me panicked: Um, sure. It is. But I have to have access to the internet! You know, research and everything.

GW calmly: Uh huh, sure. Did you make a point recovery backup?

Me panicked: Point recovery backup? Um, no. Was I supposed to do that?

GW calmly: Well, it helps for situations like this.

Me panicked: But I didn’t know. What do I do now? Does it have to go back to the factory? I don’t want to take it back. I have to have it.

GW calmly: Let me take a look at it. We might have to do a whole recovery on it.

Me panicked: What does that mean? What happens then? Will that make it work?

GW calmly: Yes, it will work. It restores it back to the factory settings.

Me panicked: Will I have to reload all my programs?

GW calmly: Yes.

Me panicked: NO!

GW calmly: Do you want it to work?

Me panicked: Of course! I NEED it to work.

GW calmly: Here’s the problem.

Me panicked: What? What is the problem? Is it broke?

GW calmly: Well, you might say that.

Me panicked: Oh, NO! What’s wrong? Does it have to go back to the factory? Can you fix it?

GW calmly: I already did.

Me no longer in a panic: You did? Cool! Is it working? What was wrong with it?

GW calmly: See this button here?

Me happy: Yeah, it has a little antenna thingy on it. What’s that for? Is it broke? Did you fix it?

GW patiently and calmly: No, it’s not broke. It turns the WiFi off and on. And guess what?

Me sheepishly with a red face: I turned it off?

GW shaking his head calmly: Oh, Babe!!!!

~Sandy

A non-writer friend of mine inquired that now I finished one book – how do I start another? Where do the ideas come from, how do I decide what I am going to write, what do I do next.

My answer was I don’t know. Everyone does it different.

Are you working on something new? she asked. And when I said yes, she asked how I got started on it. I swear she’s like a dog with a bone, LOL! I thought about it a moment and then told her I could only describe how it happened with this current story because the last one didn’t happen this way and the next may be even different.

A few weeks ago I was talking to Brenda (otherwise known as queenbee to us at Yellow Rose) and something said in that conversation sparked an idea for another story. It was just a tiny ember that just wouldn’t die. During the next week, I thought about it , stewed about it, perused it, pondered it, and even dreamed about it, until one day it grew into a wildfire. I called Brenda and said, “I’ve got it all figured out! Do you want to hear it?”

Brenda probably didn’t have a clue what I was talking about at that moment, but because she is such a dear friend and knows me well, she never asked what I was talking about, but just said ‘of course’ and I told her my new story idea.

After typing up a rough draft of a logline and a short premise and some random notes, I emailed writer friends Sandy S and Michelle and asked them if they would read something and tell me what they thought. Because they are dear friends, they never asked what I was talking about and just said ‘of course’. And I sent them my new story idea.

I called another good writer friend, Denise, and I asked her if she would listen to something and tell me what she thinks. Because she is a dear friend, she never asked what I was talking about and just said ‘of course’. And I will share my story idea.

I have been listing things I want to have happen in the book and filling in plot points and character arcs and thinking of themes and settings and such. I haven’t actually written the first word because the first line just hasn’t come to me yet. But it will.

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. LOL!

I do want to say thanks to these wonderful friends who I can call up any time and, without any questions and because they are who they are, knowing I value their opinion, will listen to me and share their true opinions and root for me and pull for me and even kick my butt for me when it needs it.

And I appreciate GW who puts up with me forgetting things and who listens to me pitch my story ideas or work out a plot problem and he never thinks I am weird when he asks what I am thinking and I launch into a long tirade on my writing and somehow, someway, he understands me.

~Sandy

I finished the first draft of my book!!!

A day early and 665 words over the bet with GW. We changed it to 45,000 because I had a whole week I missed of writing when I was busy judging for a couple of contests. Duty calls, you know.

Not that I would let anyone read it at this point. It is a really rough draft and will take quite a bit of revision. Hey, even Nora Roberts says she spits out her story and then goes back through at least twice and revises. And I am really excited about going through and shaping it up. I figure it will end up around 60,000 words once I am through revising it.

But I actually wrote and finished something and it feels so good!

And, instead of getting a Kindle, I opted for a 10 inch Netbook. And I love it, love it, love it! It is small enough to take anywhere with you and can fit into a large purse. It has WiFi capabilities so no matter where I go, I can log on and check emails, surf the net, etc. Not that I wanted one for that reason, of course LOL! But it is so convenient to haul around instead of my big laptop I had to connect and disconnect to everything it is hooked up to.

Here is a pic I pulled off the net to show how compact it is. Mine is the black one:

Now I have no reason not to write anytime, anywhere. I love it, love it, love it! Did I say that already? A friend asked why I didn’t want jewelry. My reply was that I am more interested in things that boot up! She just shook her head. It may have been in disgust, but I’d prefer to think it was amazement.

Poor GW! No double compound saw thingy for him! At least not until later. Like maybe Christmas…

But he tells me it was a win, win situation for him. Bless his sweet heart!

Gaw, I feel so rusty and awkward typing on this blog. It’s only been three months since the last time.

Off to start revisions…and do homework on a online workshop I am involved in…and jot down notes on a new story that is rolling around in my head…

Have a beautiful spring day!

~Sandy

…and hard to believe that it is almost over. When the work force calls, we have to be obedient.

But we need to be thankful for both the jobs and the time off. One does beget the other.

It is fabulous here today. Not that I have been outside yet, LOL! But the blinds are open and the sun smiles in. I hear it’s going to be close to 80 today and then tomorrow plummet to the 30’s and 40’s. Brrr.

All morning, I have been writing. Yep, you heard me correctly. For the first time in forever, we haven’t had to rush out the house for errands, but lazed around until the guilt set in and I got to work at the keyboard. Today I tried something a little more creative. I unhooked the laptop from the big monitor and drug it over to the den where I set up shop.

Actually helps the creativity some to try something different.

If I didn’t think it would get me off track, I’d take a picture of how the den looks right now with all my ‘stuff’ spread out. It is so unlike me. But I can’t write unless I have certain things within reach.

Unfortunately, the TV is on and cooking show channels are making me very hungry.

Soon, though, we have to get up and get some work outside done. Have weeding to do and mulch to spread. The pansies were looking pretty ratty, until a good watering has now perked them up and they are looking bright and cheerful.

Have a great Saturday!

~Sandy

…found another blog theme. How do you like this one, BC, KB, KT, DM, MM, SS, NH?

It can be so much fun, but so frustrating at the same time.

Have been looking for something a little more modern, a little more indicative of young adult, which, thankyouverymuch, I happen to be working diligently on.

Except for Tuesday.

And Wednesday.

But tonight I got about 500 words done.

I have been struggling on setting word count goals and I am now starting Candy Havens new class called Writers Binge. In this class we are counting hours working, not pages. I only had about an hour and a bit to write tonight and was able to spit out the 500 words. She focuses on setting how many hours a day you want to write and the goal is to get immersed in your story. You can do it in one sitting or in increments here and there.

She says the best time to write is in the morning before all the stop signs awake (her words, not mine), but that is not possible for me. So I will need to set a certain timeframe each evening and work out my hours then. It is amazing that I had been thinking about doing that for the last two weeks and then got a verification from Candy’s class this week.

Great minds, yada yada!

Stay tuned.

Gotta run…

~Sandy

…I have always wanted to visit Ireland and Scotland!!!

You Belong in Dublin

Friendly and down to earth, you want to enjoy Europe without snobbery or pretensions. You’re the perfect person to go wild on a pub crawl… or enjoy a quiet bike ride through the old part of town.

~Sandy