IWSG - April 2018

Click here to find out more and to see a list of other IWSG blogs.

The cohosts this month are  Olga Godim, Chemist Ken,Renee Scattergood, and Tamara Narayan!

ROFL - This was stuck in draft since last month. Too funny.

This Month's Question

When your writing life is a bit cloudy or filled with rain, what do you do to dig down and keep on writing?

Play a game of League of Legends, of course! It's my reward for accomplishing tasks.

News

1. I am now retired.
2. At the time this publishes, I will be on vacation in Hawaii hugging grandkids.
3. I am excited to be able to write full time!

Fun Stuff

April 1st was not only Easter but my youngest grandson's 3rd birthday. His parents had too much fun with the party!

What have you been up to since last month?

IWSG - December 2016

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Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

I'm feeling pretty good this month.

I beat NaNo in record time this year--11 days. 

I've used Dragon several times to dictate my first drafts. I love it for new words.

This year I used a dictation recorder and talked the book while I walked (something Kevin J. Anderson and Cindy M. Hogan do). I decided to give it a try.

I LOVED it!

I used to almost double my word count by using Dragon on my PC. BUT, and this is a big but, I found myself always caught up in the editing mode as the words appeared on my screen. A different--not creative--part of your brain handles editing. It really pulls you from your story creation.

By dictating it and letting Dragon transcribe it for me when I was done with the session, I was getting between 1,700 and 2,000 words in a 25 minute writing sprint.

Now, that is an ugly first draft. But all my first drafts are. At a retreat I went to in November, another author decided to give it a try. She got 2,000 words in her 30 minutes walk.

While in Hawaii babysitting three grandkids ...

We went to the beach

Saw a whole pig in Costco

Had Thanksgiving dinner with some of my daughter's friends
who are right next to one of the places they filmed the original Jurassic Park.

Went to the beach again

We also watched Fantastic Beasts 

and 

Moana

There's something so very fitting in watching Moana while in Hawaii. Loved both films!

Have you seen the movies? 

Did you try NaNo?

What are your plans for December?

November Blog Break

I'm taking November off for a couple of good reasons.

1. I'm doing NaNoWriMo

2. We're babysitting grandkids in Hawaii the last half of the month. Our oldest granddaughter is going to be in the Macy's Day parade on Thanksgiving Day, so her parents are going to New York to be there too. I know. Rough life right?

Happy Thanksgiving and if you celebrate it. And Happy November otherwise!

IWSG July 2015

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Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

It feels like I've been gone forever!

FIRST, Authors Against Child Slavery campaign: 
This is where authors donated books to people donating to Operation Underground Railroad--we achieved our goal--with two days to spare. Well, with two days to spare, we met our goal! Thank you for everyone who contributed, whether by donating books, money, or helping to spread the word.

SECOND, Vacation
I'd like to say that my vacation to Hawaii to visit my daughter and the kids was a dream. Let's just say that the trip involved:
* a burning smell inside the plane on take off that which delayed our arrival
* calls from work that had me scrambling and turned the second half of my vacation into a working vacation
* charming grandkids who I just love being around
* MineCraft - yes, they taught me how to play

 THIRD but not last -- IWSG ... and grammar
Somehow, it seems fitting that after a long blogging break I should return on IWSG day. It will force me to keep it brief.

A grammar lesson from Game of Thrones:

How has your summer been going so far?
Have you taken your vacation yet or are you still making plans?

Insecure Writers Support Group

Click here to find out more and to see a list of other IWSG blogs.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

And look what I almost forgot. Yeah, it's been that kind of month and I'm working on a deadline to finish my ghost story so I can go on vacation next month.

Did you read that?

Kauai ...

Grandkids ...

Beaches ...

Leisure reading ...

Catamaran trip ...

But no pirates allowed.

Yeah, I'm so ready.

Then I'll come back to do some editing and more editing and probably even more editing.

What about you? Got plans for the summer? What kinds of breaks do you take from your writing?

Cruise Report - Using Real Life

Wow. Hubby and I went on a shorter version of this cruise five years ago. Interesting what a change in the length of the cruise and the weather can do to the overall vacation experience.

We made it to our snorkeling excursion this time.

Last time:

• Fifteen-day cruise
• More kids
• More middle-aged people
• Better weather
• Except for a squall on Kona that prevented us from going on a snorkeling excursion, it was a dream vacation.

This time:

• Eighteen-day cruise
• Three kids (seriously--three)
• We were some of the younger passengers--funny since our cruise was to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary.
• Rougher weather

We hadn't even been out a day when there was an accident on the stairs. Now, it takes time to get your sea legs, so it could have been that. I understand that a woman lost her balance and fell against another woman. The second woman ended up breaking a leg and sustaining a head injury, including bleeding from her ear.

They determined that they needed to turn around and connect with the Coast Guard helicopter so the woman could be transported. One of the ship's four doctors (he had the most trauma experience) accompanied her. Unfortunately, her husband wasn't able to come with her because the helicopter was too full.

Doctor or husband. What a choice. Her husband stayed with the ship and had to sail five more days before being able to fly home to be with his wife.

The seas had some good-sized swells anyway, and then the captain was trying to make up lost time so we didn't lose more than one day in Hawaii. We were traveling at almost top speed some of the time. Even the day before we got to Hawaii, we were still bouncing off the walls--literally.

I loved it. Fortunately, hubby and I don't get sea sick.

We arrived in Hawaii a day late. The cruise line did an incredible job of rescheduling the entire itinerary. They didn't just have to see how many port stops they could save but to try and provide the best experience while we were there--like not being in port at the same time as another cruise ship with twice as many passengers. That would have been an incredible press on the local excursion and car rental places.

There were complaints, of course. But, as the captain said, the woman's life was more important than our vacations.

The final stop, Maui, was a bust because of the weather. It's a tender port, meaning that they use the tenders (life boats--those orange boats in the picture to the left) to get passengers to shore. Um. No. Not with five or six foot swells that were bashing the tenders against the ship.

Because of the change in the itinerary, we got to see my daughter and her family. Kaua'i was supposed to be the last stop and it ended up being the second. We managed to see them before they went on their own cruise. And talk about drama! Their ship--finally--way late because of fog. Now, they're having to scramble to catch flights home. 

Moral of the story: anything can happen. Just take a deep breath and enjoy the journey!

We came across this place on Oahu by accident. Friendly, isn't it?

At the Polynesian Cultural Center on Oahu

Part of the procession of Polynesian cultures at the PCC. This group is from New Zealand.

The snorkeling excursion wasn't even supposed to be for whale watching, but holy cow! We saw two males doing battle over a female. There were also tons of dolphins. And check out how blue that water was:

Lighthouse on Kaua'i

 At Hilo, we visited the Hawaiian Botanical Gardens. It's an amazing place with a wonderful history--and it's all been done privately. You can see pictures of some of the beautiful flowers on my Pinterest page here.

These huge beauties were hanging from a tree.

Cannonball Tree

So, what about you?

Have you ever had some interesting things happen while on vacation?

Have you ever used any of your experiences in your writing?

I'll lead out because I have. In fact, at lot of Lyn's experiences on her  Hawaii days in A Change of Plans were inspired by my own on that first cruise we took five years ago. 

Anniversary Cruise

Hubby and I are flying to San Diego today for an anniversary cruise. I'll be back on February 10th. Here's a map of my itinerary:

Hodge Podge

Since I've been on vacation this week, I've had a little more time to flit around the web. Following are a few posts I found interesting.

Author Marsha Ward's suggestions for some last-minute gifts for writers.
Funny, but my family never thinks to get me writerly gifts for my birthday or holidays. I wonder what that means.

Deb Vanasse's post over at Self-Made Writer, about how and where to get your book reviewed.

She also has a post about the etiquette and ethics of book reviews. 

I took this picture.

My daughter is a professional photographer on the island of Kaua'i. She had a shoot Friday night at the gorgeous Hanalei Bay (which is a good hour's drive from where she lives). Grampa and I went to keep her company for the long drive there and back. We walked the beach while she worked. Gorgeous sunset, wasn't it?

The water was warm too. Kind of made me feel guilty when I saw the news report for home. Snow.

All right. Not guilty. But I am going to stop thinking about how muggy and humid it is here. There will be plenty of cold winter waiting for me when I return home.

I tried to capture the big waves breaking at the mouth of the bay. I had to blow this up several times. Those waves are much farther away than they appear. Unlike my daughter, I'm not a professional photographer. I even forgot the recharger for my camera so I'm stuck with my cell phone.

The beach at Hanalei has fine, two-colored sand. It makes for an interesting pattern when the waves crash in and out.

So, what would you want as a writerly gift?

What are your thoughts on exchanging book reviews with other writers?

Ever been to Hawaii?

Snow, Top 100 Lists, and Giving Books for Christmas

I had quite the snowy weekend with frigid temps. This is a side-garden picture from my bedroom window. Brrrr

I'm so ready to be headed to Hawaii on Sunday for a family visit.

Have you seen author Heather Moore's Guest post about hitting the top 100 on Amazon?

Every time someone searches a category, the top sellers show up, and if you’re on the list, your exposure increases. But how do you get to the top of the lists? Or, in other words, how do you rise in rankings? You may have heard of Reddit, which is a social media news source entirely dependent on user submissions and views. The articles with the most views work their way to the Reddit homepage. This is a bit how Amazon category rankings work, but with the books with the most sales working their way to the top of the rankings. (If your book isn’t getting sales, Amazon will mercifully notify viewers that your book has at least been viewed by other customers searching similar terms. But rising in rank is about sales.)

You can read more about it here.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

Don't forget the "Give Books for Christmas" bloghop. I'm giving away TWO ebooks!

For details about the giveaway and other participating blogs and the books they're giving away, click here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Vacation

I'm in the throes of a municipal election that's starting a month earlier than in the past and a roster of 17 candidates for 3 seats. I've got family coming in July from the far reaches of the world (like China and Hawaii). All our grandchildren will be together for the first time--two we haven't seen in nearly 4 years.

I've also set a goal to get Jori's book up to snuff and submitted to my publisher for consideration before the families get here. Something's gotta give.

So, I'm taking a blogging vacation. Except for some book launches that I've already signed up for and, perhaps, an occasional update on my editing, I'll be keeping a schedule like sign above.

Imagine I'm doing this:

Though, in this case, Hawaii is coming to me.

Happy New Year!

Source: PowerPoint

A new year is like the blank page of a new project. So, are you a pantster or a plotter when it comes to your life? Do you give thought to what you want to accomplish or just wing it?

Some years ago, a lady at church made a rather profound observation about goals. She said a goal that cannot be achieved isn't a goal at all. It's a dream. You know about dreams, right? Those things we spend time thinking about but never actually doing anything about?

I know many people who don't like to do New Years resolutions, and I can kind of understand it. These resolutions have gotten to be a bit of joke, where people set them and by February 1st they've given up on them.

This begs the question then: why do resolutions so often fail?

I think it may go back to that statement by the lady at church. Are we setting resolutions that are really dreams, things we think might be fun to accomplish but for which we're doing nothing to prepare ourselves for success?

A goal (resolution) must be achievable. If my goal is to take a vacation in Hawaii yet I make no effort to save money to pay for it, I won't ever be going to Hawaii. If I want to write a book but never do anything but edit the first three chapters, then it can never be anything but a dream.

So what if I choose a goal that's too big to achieve? Break it down into steps that can be achieved. Maybe you don't have enough discretionary income to save for your trip to Hawaii. So, perhaps it's time to look at ways to get rid of that debt, cut some things you don't really need. Maybe you don't know how to finish your book, so attend some writing conferences, become a member of a critique group, sign up for Camp NaNo.

The bottom line is this: DO something.

Some of my goals:
* Keep track of the books I read
* Do my first writing presentation (twice)
* Attend LTUE
* Attend the ANWA conference
* Attend Storymaker
* Survive the launch of my first book this June
* Finish editing my NaNo project (writing it was one of my 2012 goals) by the end of this month so I can submit it to my critique group with the plan to submit to my publisher later this year
* Spend Christmas on Kaui'i (with my daughter who lives there)

What are your plans for 2013?

Vacation . . . Again. Oh, and Self-Editing

Yep, I'm headed to paradise again.

I know. Rough life.

Robin Weeks posted an LTUE class update about self-editing. (I know! I've been a serious slacker/loser in this area myself, but repentance is coming. Someday). But it's an awesome recap of a class taught by the amazing Tristi Pinkston (author and editor).  It's definitely worth your time to check it out. 

When I find posts like this, I copy them and post the information in a document (with a link back to the original post), so I won't lose it. How do you keep track of useful information you find online?

Kaua'i

One of my granddaughters tiptoeing on Shipwreck Beach.

Hubby, daughter, son-in-Law, and two granddaughters.

View of the beach.

Three generations build a sandcastle at Shipwreck Beach.

Spouting Horn

Mt. Kipu on Wednesday. It was stormy most of the day.

Here's another view of Mt. Kipu on Thursday when the weather was much nicer.

At the Fishing Pond with Mt. Kipu in the distance.

A friend recommended that we try Puka Dogs, so we did. Yum!

 

 

 

 

Vacation

Today, I'm heading to the lovely island of Kaua'i to visit my daughter and her family. I'll be popping in here once in a while with pictures and some other bloggerly business (like book reviews and blog award acknowledgements).

These are a few pictures from my trip in June of 2010 and February 2011.

Napali Coast 2010

My grandson said he still loves the Utah mountains, but he likes these better. Personally, I think it's the beach.

Don't you love the laid back atmosphere? This is from one of the most popular Shave Ice shacks. And it really isn't open all the time. If you drive by and it's open, you'd best grab some.