"Free" time

This is the first weekend I don't have anything scheduled since Labor Day.

Pause for thought -- Labor Day. Long time ago, eh? I've had either a book signing, a trip, a conference, a panel discussion .... something since Labor Day.

I didn't realize how much I prized free time until I didn't have much of it. My husband asked what I'm going to do with it. "Write, I suppose?"

Yes, but I'm also going to take time -- maybe have a nap, go buy some apples and stop for antiques along the way, do some cooking, do some shopping. I've done all of those things wedged into my weekends in between other events, but this weekend I'm just going to do those things. I'm not going to fit them in, they'll be the main event.

I think that's what I miss most in my hectic schedule. I end up slotting activites into a schedule and don't have time to relax and just enjoy them. So that's what free time gives me. I don't have to begrudge the activity that takes me away from the thing I love to do in my free time -- write.

And that's enough deep thoughts for a beautiful autumn Saturday! I'm going to go out, enjoy the leaves, eat some pie, and poke around a few antique stores. I hope your Saturday is as pleasant!

Fodder for fiction

The current election is providing me with great fodder for my fiction, to the point that I'm going to have to store some of it up and use later!

My current WIP is about another planet and the government is undergoing some major upheavals. Wow. Sound familiar? Isn't it great when I can take news headlines, tweak them a bit, and make them work in my books?

As I sit and write this, I'm watching the fall foliage outside my window. The colors are amazing this year, mainly because all the weather conditions came together at the right time. The yellows, oranges, and reds are surprising in their intensity. Now if we can just store up these memories in the snowy days ahead just like I'm storing up political nonsense for future books!

Horn tooting!

Just want to share -- my time travel/paranormal/reincarnation love story, "Forgiveness", got third place in the PRISM contest run by RWA's FF&P group. I was beat out by 2 mainstream paranormal books, one of which won "Best of the Best" in the contest.

See all the results here:

http://ffnp.blogspot.com/

Not bad for a book that has never seen the light of print (and oh, I wish it would -- I have a ready-made audience for that book in a college town nearby!)

Things to be thankful for ...

Every now and then, I look around and realize that I am truly lucky. This is one of those days.

My spouse is ill -- he's got a cold, and when he gets a cold, it's always a doozy. He's been bed-bound for days, and is wobbly on his feet. I used to think this was the old 'a man gets a cold and the world stops spinning' syndrome, but I think it really does wallop him. I seldom get ill and when I do, it's usually here then gone. So Point 1 to be thankful for.

Point 2: a friend of mine has been left a widow with 7 children and no life insurance policy from her spouse. Their house is mortgaged to the hilt and she has to re-enter the high tech workforce after a 10 year absence. I don't see a good solution to her problems anywhere -- 10 years is too long to be out of the high tech loop. There were a lot of red flags along the way, but no one expected her husband to die (he was only 52 and died after a very brief illness). So Point 2: I know where the life insurance policy is, and even if my spouse died, I could survive on one income.

Point 3: well, look at 1 and 2 -- if you've got your health, and you've got some financial stability, just about everything else falls into place, doesn't it? I don't have any impending crises, I have deadlines that are somewhat reasonable at work and at home, and I have a roof over my head.

Yep. Things to be thankful for .... Now if we can get this #*(@!)! election out of the way, I'll be truly thankful!

Ah, the best laid plans ...

I planned this week to work on another book -- edits this time.


Alas, high technology got in the way. The resort we frequent at this time of year finally went high-tech, so I had WiFi access to the Internet. I didn't get done as much as I wanted, writing-wise. The good thing, though, is I didn't come home to 900 email messages, either.


I did get one book edited and have started on another. And I relaxed, did some hiking (ouch), hit some golf balls at a fantastic resort (ouch again), and had a good time, so the vacation was a success. Monday it's back to work, but this weekend I'm going to pretend I'm still on vacation and do some more relaxing. I figure I need to store up the stress-free moments since I'm heading into a stress-full time at work this fall.


The colors were beautiful, the weather was iffy except for the last 2 days, and the loons were as plantative as I remember. Viva vacation!