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I always have story ideas,
1) Kentucky Derby—something about the glamour appeals to me, and I’ve always loved horses. I know it’s been done a lot, and done well, but I’d like to play with the idea. Maybe a wrong-side-of-the-tracks romance
2) Alaska—I’m reading Trish’s Winter Longing, and I loved Nora’s Northern Lights. I loved Men in Trees and Northern Exposure. I love the idea of the extreme weather and wildlife. Have no plot idea at all, though.
3) Fiesta—something I know well. I even have my heroine. I just have no plot. (I know, when has that stopped me?)
4) Santa Fe—I’ve never been but I’ve heard it’s amazing. No plot or characters but maybe I could go for research
5) Bermuda Triangle—I have an inciting incident, but no characters or plot.
6) Maine, right on the coast. I have a thing for lighthouses, see.
7) The barrier islands, either NC or Virginia—Just because I love the coast and I grew up reading Misty of Chincoteague.
Where is your favorite setting to read? Have one you want to write?
5:08 AM | | 3 Comments
Kitties, Testing and Writing
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Book Releases, The Losers, TAKS testing
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5:30 AM | Labels: books, JDM, movies, school | 0 Comments
Yawn
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6:36 AM | | 0 Comments
Goals for the Week of TAKS
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Fiesta’d yesterday—King William parade and fair, stopped for a drink at a local patio bar, hiked back to the car. I got a bit of a sunburn and came home so tired! Watched Avatar again when I got home and just vegged.
This will be the week for vegging, with the kids testing. Can’t do anything but monitor. Maybe then I can figure out the right ending for this short story—and for Queen. One of these days I’m going to come up with the ending first.
1) survive 2 days of my kids testing, and a third day of 5th grade testing, which means our kids have to be quiet
2) finish revisions on short story for Samhain
3) finish revisions on Queen
4) sew gray skirt, cut out blue dress
5) go see The Losers (dh’s back went out Friday night, spoiled that plan for last week)
6) grocery
7) exercise
8) house
9) yard
6:43 AM | | 4 Comments
I Have a Confession
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8:20 AM | | 7 Comments
School
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8:00 PM | Labels: school | 0 Comments
Birthday
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4:41 PM | | 5 Comments
Post-Party Bonus
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5:10 AM | | 2 Comments
Goals for the Week of AWESOME (oh please don't take this as an invitation for drama!)
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Also a crazy week, so I’m dialing back the writing, which makes me feel guilty since I didn’t do a lot last week. I should have finished Queen already, and should be halfway through Midnight Sun, but I cut 3000 words and haven’t made much progress since.
But, this week should (oh please no drama to ruin it) be good:
1) my birthday party
2) my birthday
3) last week of tutoring!!!!!!!!!!
4) Avatar on DVD (Sam!!!!!!)
5) The Losers in the theater (JDM, baby!!)
6) Tahmoh (Helo from BSG) has a new miniseries on Sci-Fi. Almost forgot about that one.
7) Problem Child will be absent Monday, going to the doctor to please God get medication. (I have only ever wanted a child on medication one other time in my career. Trust me that this is a desperate situation.)
8) Revisions on short story for Samhain
9) Finish a round of revisions on Queen, then go through one more time for continuity
10) Fiesta event with mom, BB, SIL and her bff
11) Exercise
12) House
6:08 AM | Labels: birthday, goals, JDM, movies | 6 Comments
Sorry Writing Week
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4:57 AM | | 7 Comments
What Skills Do You Wish You Had?
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I wish I could cook, or enjoyed it enough to learn. I have a few recipes that I rotate, but I wish I enjoyed the process enough so I could cook like Candace. Her tweets about what she’s having for dinner are mouth-watering.
I enjoy gardening, but I don’t give enough time to it. My friend Dawn has a gorgeous yard, but she devotes hours to creating it.
My beloved Land Cruiser is sitting in the driveway needing an engine overhaul. I wish I knew how to restore her. Then I’d get that Impala….
I wish I could create my own website from html.
I wish I could plot a series.
What do you wish you could do?
4:38 AM | | 7 Comments
One of my Favorite Things
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Natalie convinced me to come back to Netflix since I was having so much trouble getting new releases from Blockbuster, and they changed the exchange-a-mailed-movie-for-a-movie-in-the-store policy. So I came back, and had the same trouble getting new releases.
But.
We got a new Tivo, which streams a lot (a LOT) of Netflix movies. A. LOT. Recently I learned they stream The Dresden Files and all the Buffy and Angel series (though I own those.) They stream all seasons of Grey’s Anatomy and The Office. They stream the new cable series Spartacus, and the old Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew (not the whole season, though.) Also The Night Stalker, remember that series? Also Lost, Torchwood, The Tudors, Harper’s Island and Heroes.
Then there are the movies. Two Sam Worthington Australian movies, a lot of the Mystery Science Theater movies, classics like Jason and the Argonauts, Cleopatra, Butterflies are Free, the original Clash of the Titans. Penelope is on there, a few of the Rocky movies, the second Terminator. Singles, The Breakfast Club, The Last of the Mohicans, only a click away. Somewhere in Time, Princess Bride, Footloose. Newer movies, too, like The Taking of Pelham 123, The Ugly Truth, Angels and Demons and The Proposal (which I’ve now seen a BUNCH.) Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog is there, and I realized I hadn’t seen the last episode. Caddyshack, Vacation and for awhile, Animal House was on.
It’s so nice, we’ve cut back to one DVD at a time, and when we’re in the mood, we just click onto Netflix. It stops the movie when you stop it and you can pick it up again later. I know Trish is using her netbook to stream them, which I could do, but I prefer it on the TV.
Anyone else use Netflix streaming? And no, no one is paying me for this!
5:00 AM | Labels: movies, TV | 5 Comments
Weird Things You Eat
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The other night on Twitter, agent Colleen Lindsay wanted to know why anyone would eat Miracle Whip on purpose. She got a flurry of responses from Southerners who eat it all the time.
I started thinking about weird things I’ve eaten repeatedly, and liked.
I like Miracle Whip on my black-eyed peas.
I eat ketchup on my scrambled eggs.
My mom used to make this “salad” with pineapple slices, grated cheddar cheese and Miracle Whip. My step-uncle would make fun of us, but it was GOOD.
When we were growing up, and didn’t have something sweet to eat, we’d spread butter on white bread and sprinkle sugar on it for bread, butter and sugar sandwiches.
My baby brother grew up eating mayonnaise sandwiches. I think it was Miracle Whip on white bread.
My friend Denise eats ketchup on her macaroni and cheese.
What weird food combinations do you eat?
4:55 AM | | 9 Comments
Series I've Started
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Michele was talking about reading the Bullet Catcher series by Roxanne St. Clair, and I want to read that as well as Christy Reece’s books. And the Soulless/Changeless books. But I’m already so far behind on several series, I hate to start another. And it’s not that I didn’t enjoy the first books—I did, which is why I bought the subsequent books. I just don’t..have…time!
I read and loved Larissa Ione’s first Demonica book. I have all the others. Haven’t started.
I read and loved Rachel Vincent’s first book. The were-panther shifter books, Stray, Pride, all those. I have the second book in the series. Haven’t started.
I just finished book 6 or 7 of the Robyn Carr Virgin River series. There are three more. I own them all. I have to say, I loved Temptation Ridge almost as much as the first book.
I read and loved the first Colleen Gleason Gardella book. Have the others. Haven’t started.
Same with the Joss post-apocalyptic books.
I’ve got the next two Michelle Rowen books in her series. I think I read 2, and I own 2.
The Cindy Gerard books—I have the last of her previous series and the first three or four of her new series.
I have all of Paula Graves’s books, first series and this new one. I read the first of the first one and got behind.
I read the first two Robyn Dehart historicals, and I think she has one more in that series. I have it, and the first book of her new series, which I haven’t started.
I’ve read 2 Linda Winfree Heart of the South books, own most of the rest, haven’t gotten to them.
Read the first Meg Benjamin, own the next two, haven’t read.
We won’t even talk about how far behind I am with the JD Robb books. Or the Jim Butcher ones.
The series I keep up with are Nora and Suzanne Brockmann. No idea why those are easier than others.
And I know what you’re thinking—that’s a lot of books, right? That’s not even the category series, or the stand-alones. Yeah, a lot of books. Maybe I should just read this summer!
4:44 AM | Labels: books, reading | 7 Comments
Goals the Week of Traffic Duty
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Of course you know my traffic duty week would be one of the two full weeks in April. Sigh. At least I get to leave early M, W and F, since I have to be at school earlier.
1) Traffic duty
2) Work on MIL’s house. We’re really mostly done but haven’t been able to get over there since Spring Break.
3) 7000 words on the RS
4) finish revisions on Queen, start revisions on Road Signs (again)
5) exercise (maybe take the dog for walks to appease her need to wander)
6) keep up house (I was really glad I’d been doing this when the police detective came over the other night with not much warning!)
Huh. Not too bad. If I can survive the 7:45-4:15 part of the day!
5:43 AM | Labels: goals | 2 Comments
The Day Is Mine! (Cue Evil Laughter)
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You Ever Have One of Those Weeks....
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Book Recommendations
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Used Up My Blogging Time Budget Here
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6:05 AM | | 0 Comments
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I joined Facebook last summer with my pen name, thinking, you know, promotion. I never expected the level of involvement I’d have with it.
My California family is on. I haven’t been in contact with them in years, and now I’m trading weekly (if not daily) updates with my cousin and aunt. The cousin who came to visit last week had just joined Facebook, too, so now we connect.
My mom is on. Yes, she lives 7 minutes away, but we still send each other stuff on Facebook. It’s the ONLY way I see my Texas cousins and my SIL.
Then my school friends started getting on. By the end of last summer, I was excited about going back after keeping up with them the last few weeks. I’ve gotten to know some of them better through Facebook. I also found some teacher friends who have moved on (or stayed behind) to other schools.
Then I went into the past. I friended a girl I went to middle school with, and then another, and then found a fan page for my elementary school. I cannot describe the joy I felt—all the posters were from my time, and we had the same memories and it was wonderful. So I found some high school buddies, and eureka! My bff from high school showed up right at the end of the Christmas break. Oh, I was so happy.
I'm kind of tripping, though, because at least 3 of my HS friends are GRANDMOTHERS. I mean, my mom was a grandmother when she's my age, but it still freaks me out. Also, almost all my friends have been divorced. My 23-year marriage is the exception.
Sometimes it’s a little much—too many people, knowing too much about me. And recently one of my former students, who is in 7th grade, became a fan of my author page. I’m always very cautious about what I post, but GULP! The other night when we were at the movies, I was posting updates and the dh got nervous about people knowing we were away from the house. I never post updates about being home alone, though.
I love posting pictures on Facebook because everyone can see them (okay, my dad doesn't have a page, but my stepmom does). I can also post reviews and such that I want to share. People in my family and from my past may know a little too much about my thing for Sam Worthington, but I'm okay with that.
I make lists, so I can check family, teachers, my past, at a glance.
It’s not my FAVORITE social network—I love Twitter because it’s less of a commitment, honestly—but it’s made me less of a hermit, because I’m interacting online with people I know IRL.
Do you Facebook? Do you love it?
5:59 AM | | 5 Comments
A New Series
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Rhonda Penders
Did you ever wonder what happened to . . .
The Prom Queen? The guy most likely to serve time in a federal prison? The couple voted most likely to succeed?
If intrigued with the opportunity to rewrite a bit of history . . . or exact a little revenge. . . .
The Last Rose of Summer invites you to a reunion of
The Class of '85
Dear fellow alumna,
Hard to believe it's been 25 years since we last walked the halls of Summerville High. Wouldn't you like to know what's going on with former classmates?
The Reunion Committee has worked hard to plan a fabulous, fun-filled three day celebration on the last weekend in June at the historic Summerville Inn.
Come for one day or all three—but register early for the SHS package discount.
Bring your spouse or come stag. You won't believe the surprises waiting for you!
RSVP to KathyCottrell@
Details which must be included in every submission:
* Summerville is a medium size city on the shores of Lake Ontario in Western New York State.
• Some students may still live in Summerville, others might be returning for the first time since graduation. They might make it back for the celebration; they might not.
• The above invitation will kick off the story but it is the concept of "whatever happened to . . ." which is the key element.
• The reunion might be one feature of the story, only a side-note as in a 'regrets-only' RSVP phone call. The common thread among all Class of '85 stories will be the invitation above. It is up to the author to take it from there.
• The Hero or Heroine [or both] must be a member of the Class of '85.
* Story length: 7,500—40,000 computer word count
* Sensuality level: sweet to sensual [no erotica]
* As always, it MUST be a romance with protagonists who have realistic goals, motivation and conflict—along with a HEA ending.
Submit to: queryus@thewildrosepress.com with "Class of '85" in the subject line.
5:56 AM | | 0 Comments
Post 1800--Goals for the week of Easter
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We can wear jeans all week because 5th grade is taking the TAKS. Yay!
1) celebrate Easter
2) make skirt
3) cut out dress
4) work on RS
5) pull out my vampire hunter book and start revising. Again.
6) Dinner with middle school friends (?) We reconnected on Facebook and I would love to see them again.
7) Tutoring (6 more days this year!!)
8) Exercise
9) Keep up house (I did pretty well with both of those last week)
I have a plan for writing for the rest of the school year--I'm revising VH now, and I'm going to revise my sweet romance after that, while I'm writing the RS. That should carry me the next 9 weeks :)
12:14 AM | Labels: goals | 2 Comments
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![My Photo](http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b347/MaryF13/HPIM0317.jpg)
- MJFredrick
- I'm a mom, a wife, a teacher and a writer. I have five cats and a dog to keep me company. I love bookstores and libraries and Netflix - movies are my greatest weakness.
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