Finished “Chance Hotel” and Getting Ready for the Next Trip!

I am tired of getting ready for the next trip. Remind me to NEVER schedule a book signing between two cruises.

Oh wait, that was Hubby who scheduled the second cruise after I had already committed to the book signing.

Oh well… Maybe if the book signing had gone better than it did, I wouldn’t care. But it didn’t and I’m just tired.

Anyway, we fly out to San Francisco tomorrow and plan to visit some National Parks before heading on our next cruise on the 10^th. So today is laundry and packing day.

Yes, I wait until the last minute. Always have. Always will.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 21

Dates read: August 16-31, 2026
Title: Chance Hotel
Year of publication: 2022
Author: Christopher Gorham Calvin
Genre: Paranormal
Series: Chance Hotel #1
# of Pages: 364
Paper or plastic: Nook
How obtained: Free from Barnes & Noble
Blurb from Goodreads: Welcome to the Chance Hotel. Checkout time is… never.
    Jason Chance is running from a toxic marriage and his failures as a father, clutching a bag full of cash he claims isn’t his own. With a storm bearing down, he thought a free room at an isolated hotel was the lucky break he desperately needed. He was wrong.
    Stripped of his car and trapped by an impossible ransom, Jason becomes a prisoner in a building that defies logic. The staff are suspiciously friendly. The elevators seem to have a mind of their own. And somewhere on a hidden thirteenth floor, a monstrous entity waits in the mist. As his exhaustion mounts, Jason’s reality begins to fracture, leaving him to wonder if the horrors around him are real, or just manifestations of his own crumbling mind.
    But his fraying sanity is the least of his worries.
    Caught in a supernatural labyrinth where his every moral failing is being judged, Jason must make an impossible choice: face the shattered life he left behind, or sacrifice his freedom to become a permanent fixture of the Chance Hotel.
Recommend: Yes
My thoughts: I only recommend it because it is not badly written and it did keep my interest, but the genre? I thought at first maybe horror, but it’s not really that. So paranormal it is. It was an okay book, but I didn’t like it enough to bother getting the rest of the series. I really didn’t care for Jason.

So all this traveling has bogged me down where I haven’t been able to get back to the edits on The Alien’s Change of Heart. Was kind of hoping I would be done with it before we left. Looks like I’ll be working on it during our trip. I really want this ready for my NEXT book signing. Having a new book out really helps with sales. At least, that’s what I’m finding out.

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Finished Reading “A Bloom in Winter” and Editing is Moving Along

Editing Alien Desires is moving along pretty well. I had a bit of a hiccup on one of the comments my editor made, but thankfully after talking to some writer friends, the fix was super easy (and I had the perfect spot for it, too). I really do enjoy this part of the writing process: finding out where my problems lie. I know I have them, but I’m just too close to the darn thing to see them.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 4

Dates read: February 17-25, 2025
Title: A Bloom in Winter
Year of publication: 2024
Author: J.R. Ward
Genre: Paranormal romance
Series:  Black Dagger Brotherhood #22.5
# of Pages: 447
Paper or plastic: Hard cover
How obtained: Purchased from B&N
Blurb from Book: For his entire life, and especially during his century in the prison camp, Apex never believed the bonded-male vampire myths. But when he crossed paths with a sexy wolven, the assassin was done being a lone wolf himself. Tragically, fate had other plans for them, and in the decades since, the world has held little interest—and even less warmth—for him.
    He has never forgotten the male, however…
    Even after all this time, Callum remains haunted by the horrible abduction that destroyed him down to his marrow those many years ago. Living as a loner, drifting from place to place, the wolven has finally returned to upstate New York—and he is not expecting to see the vampire who has always been on his mind.
    As a plot to overthrow the King threatens the Brothers down in Caldwell, Apex and Callum find themselves face-to-face—and caught up in a deadly, treasonous plot. Can two lonely, lost souls find a way back to each other…or will destiny once again condemn their hearts to isolation?
Recommend: Yes
My thoughts: Two romances in this book. For a half book (#22.5), it packs a lot. And while it has 447 pages, it is a small hard cover and the print is larger than normal. This is no novella, though. It’s probably the length of what your average author writes. And like I said it packs a lot. I had a lot of fun reading it.

Not much else is going on right now. Our next trip isn’t until May. Shocker, huh? But that should give me all the time I need to finish Alien Desires and get that thing published. As long as I don’t come across another hiccup. And yes, I skimmed over the comments, but that doesn’t mean they hit me as a problem. The first hiccup (and hopefully only) didn’t hit me when I first read it. It’s not until I’m actually back in the story that I get the comment. And I appreciate every comment I get. I’m all for making the book better. That’s my goal.

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Wednesday Reads and Other Stuff

Here’s what I finished reading this week:

Book #22

Dates read: April 22-27
Title: Crashing Heat
Year of publication: 2019
Author: Richard Castle
Genre: Mystery
Series:  Nikki Heat #10
# of Pages: 234
Paper or plastic: Hardback
How obtained: Purchased
Blurb from book: Marriage. It’s a double-edged sword, or at least it is for Nikki Heat. Her husband, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jameson Rook, infuriates her in a way no one else in her entire life has ever done. He also takes her to heights of pleasure she has never experienced. But most of all, she loves the man with all her heart and she’d do anything to protect him—which is just what she has done not so long ago. It almost cost them everything.
    Now Rook is given the honor to be a visiting professor at his alma mater, and he can’t pass up the opportunity to mentor burgeoning writers at his award-winning college newspaper. But shortly after his arrival on campus, a female reporter for the paper is found dead…naked…in Rook’s bed.
    Dealing with betrayal from any man is not Nikki’s style. She and Jameson have had plenty of conflicts during their complicated relationship, but none like this. Is her husband keeping secrets, or can she really trust him? In order to find out, Nikki gives Jameson the benefit of the doubt and digs into his theory of a secret society within a secret society. What she finds puts her investigative skills, and her marriage, to the test.
My thoughts: A little more tame than the other books in this series. No thrilling suspense in a life-and-death adventure. Just a straight-up mystery. It was okay, but not as good as the others. And apparently a character has been brought back from the dead, but funny thing, I didn’t notice. Shows you how much I pay attention to minor characters.

I’m down to one project again since I returned Biting the Curse to my editor for another look. Almost feel free! Working on two projects takes up more time than I imagined. But I met my goal and that makes me HAPPY!

Know what also made me happy? Watching the Blue Jackets win last night. Whoo hoo! I’m also rooting for St. Louis, Carolina, and Colorado (in case you were wondering).

So… Whatcha reading now? Anything good? How did you find the book?

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Wednesday Reads and April is Crazy Busy!

Here’s what I finished reading this week:

Book #21

Dates read: April 8-21
Title: The Savior
Year of publication: 2019
Author: J.R. Ward
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series:  Black Dagger Brotherhood #17
# of Pages: 479
Paper or plastic: Hardback
How obtained: Purchased
Blurb from book: In the venerable history of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, only one male has ever been expelled—but Murhder’s insanity gave the Brothers no choice. Haunted by visions of a female he could not save, he nonetheless returns to Caldwell on a mission to right the wrong that ruined him. However, he is not prepared for what he must face in his quest for redemption.
    Dr. Sarah Watkins, researcher at a biomedical firm, is struggling with the loss of her fellow scientist fiancé. When the FBI starts asking about his death, she questions what really happened and soon learns the terrible truth: Her firm is conducting inhumane experiments in secret and the man she thought she knew and loved was involved in the torture.
    As Murhder’s and Sarah’s destines become irrevocably entwined, desire ignites between them. But can they forge a future that spans the divide separating the two species? And as a new foe emerges in the war against the vampires, Murhder is called to return to the Black Dagger Brotherhood. Choosing between his mate and his fate as a fighter however, may be the final thing that breaks him…
My thoughts: I loved this so much. I just wish I could have sat and read it quicker. I love the characters. I love this series. Love, love, love!!!

I’ll kind of be glad when this month is over. I’m getting my 500+ words written daily on Perry’s book (except for one day, when I only wrote 200), I’m now editing 2+ chapters daily on Biting the Curse, AND I’m taking a class on internal conflict (and it has homework!).

I’m really surprised I’m getting the writing done, but so glad I am. The story is starting to take off. I'm already up to 25K words. I just hope it goes where I want it to. Haha!

But the class ends on the 30^th and I expect to have the edits finished by then, too. Then maybe I’ll get some breathing time. Or at least some Doctor Who time. It’s been awhile since I’ve been able to watch it.

I’m also behind in my reading. Six books behind.

Because April is just crazy busy! Aaack!!!

So… Have you ever had one of those months? How long did it take you to recover?

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Today I Shall Breathe Easier

Today I will finish up the edits on Biting the Curse and will send it off to my editor. Once I hit that send button, I shall breathe easier. That’ll be one job done and out of the way!

And boy, was that book taking up my time or what? My reading has suffered. My TV watching has suffered. I’ve suffered! I’ll be happy to get back to Dr. Who (if I can remember where I left off).

Of course, none of that will happen until after I’ve written 500+ words on the new project. But I do that when I get up. I really do get my best writing done then. At least, I’m most productive then. Whether it’s my best, well, who knows. It’s words. On the page. That’s what matters.

I mentioned last week that we got our new couch delivered. Well, here’s a picture of our great room.

The couch on the right is the new one. The one on the left we got back in August. When the store had another sale, I just took my paperwork and said I wanted another one of those. Easy sale for the store, huh?

We really like this couch, though. The sides recline (electronically!). Very comfortable. And now we have room for everyone!

So… What was the last piece of furniture you bought? Anything good?

Happy Monday.

Stacy

Emerging from the Editing Cave

I feel like I’ve been in a cave since February 1^st. Amazing how consuming revising and editing can be when you set a deadline. Or rather, a short deadline. Not something I want to do again, let me tell you.

But I’m starting to emerge. I’m starting to breathe easier. I’ve gone through the whole manuscript and fixed it up (even the ending, which ended up not needing THAT much changed (yay!!)). Added almost 13,000 words net to that puppy (which it needed since I tend to write dialogue-heavy). Next, I plan to print it out (maybe with a different font?) and read it that way. Sometimes the errors pop out better on paper. Don’t know why, but it does for me.

I’m really hoping I don’t find a lot that needs to be changed. I’m really hoping I fixed everything that needs to be fixed. Yeah, I really hope a lot because the truth is, I’m sure I’ll find stuff that needs to be changed and I probably didn’t fix everything. This writer can dream, though, can’t she?

So… Saturday’s hockey game in Columbus didn’t go so well. I hate that stupid cannon!! Yeah, the Penguins won 3 of the 4 games they met this season, but I was really hoping for that sweep. And I was really hoping to not hear that cannon.

See? Hoping.

But!!! They won last night against Boston (sorry, not sorry, Jeff!). Now, if they can only play well CONSISTENTLY!

Today we get our new couch delivered. I’ll have to take a picture of our great room once it’s in so you all can see it. Next furniture purchase: two bookcases. The two in my sunroom will go into the front bedroom/television room, where two matching bookcases reside. I just have to figure out what kind of bookcases I want in the sunroom. Or rather, I have to go bookcase shopping. Where would one go for bookcases, though? Besides an expensive furniture store? I’m not looking for works of art. Just something to hold books!

Happy Monday.

Stacy

I'm Trying

I’m trying sooooo hard. I’m trying to get my revisions done by Thursday (my goal for the month), but it’s not looking like it’ll happen. **weep, weep**

That’s because I didn’t take into account the appointments I have going on this week, the major changes that needed to occur, and, of course, feeling like crap (haha, pun intended) earlier in the month. But I’ve certainly worked hard on those days I could. So far this month I’ve worked on it 17 days, gone over the first 186 pages (so a little over 60% done), and added 6745 words (I’ve deleted some, too—man, that was hard!—so that’s the net change).

And because of my little hiccups, my new writing project has suffered (I stopped writing it) and my reading has suffered (thus, no book to report last Wednesday).

My exercise has suffered, too, but we won’t mention that. Shhhh.

Heck, I’m writing this during the Oscars, so I’m doing double duty!

I so much want to finish by Thursday, but I’m not going to rush this project. I want it to be a GOOD book, not one out quickly. And if my “slowness” causes me to not have it released in July, so be it. I won’t put out a book just to put it out there. I take pride in my work and I’d like to think my readers appreciate that.

I still love the revising process. I just forgot how hard it is!!

So… Did you watch the Oscars last night? I didn’t recognize a lot of films that were nominated. Is it because they weren’t shown around here? Or maybe I just never saw an ad for them (guess I’d have to go to the movies more often to see the ads, huh?).

Happy Monday.

Stacy

My Body Hates Me

That’s right. My body hates me. At least, it sure feels that way.

I walk to get stronger so what does my body do? Hurts my feet, hurts my knee, makes it difficult to walk.

I do sit ups to work my core body (and these are not difficult ones) and what does my body do? Cramp up so much I thought I had appendicitis. It took me several minutes before I could stand straight again (and I’m really afraid to do sit ups now).

I eat food my body likes and what does it do? Keep it! I tell you, I’ve been in agony for a week. And my writing and editing have suffered for it. So has my exercise.

See? It hates me, right? But I taught it a lesson. I fed it food it doesn’t like. Now it’s getting rid of it. But it sure is taking it’s time.

I sure hope I haven’t messed up my editing goal. I still want to finish by the end of the month. I just hope my body behaves from now on.

But you know how they can be: Evil!

Happy Monday.

Stacy

Wednesday Reads and I'm Crazy

Last Thursday I actually finished the first draft of Biting the Curse. Yay! Just like I wanted. Double yay! And I even took Friday off to celebrate. Triple yay! But on Monday?

I not only started the revisions on BTC, I started a new book!

Oh my gosh! Am I crazy or what?

Mornings are still the best for writing first drafts and I don’t want to mess with that routine (or would that be muscle). It’s working tooooo well. But I can revise/edit anytime (I hope…we’ll see). And since I gave myself a deadline to finish revisions by Feb 28^th, I’m determined. I only need to work on 13 pages a day. It sure helps to break it down into chunks, let me tell you.

And while I’m doing all the writing and revising, I’m still judging books, thus the lack of information I can give you on these books right now. Here’s what I finished reading this week:

Book #7

Dates read: January 27-29
Title: ?
Year of publication: 2018
Author: ?
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Series:  ?
# of Pages: 124
Paper or plastic: Nook
How obtained: Free (to judge)
Blurb from book: ?
My thoughts: Wasn’t fond of it. Bummer.

Book #8

Dates read: January 30-February 2
Title: ?
Year of publication: 2018
Author: ?
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series:  ?
# of Pages: 191
Paper or plastic: Nook
How obtained: Free (to judge)
Blurb from book: ?
My thoughts: Not a bad book. I’d recommend it to fans of the genre.

Book #9

Dates read: February 2-4
Title: ?
Year of publication: 2018
Author: ?
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series:  ?
# of Pages: 283
Paper or plastic: Paperback
How obtained: Free (to judge)
Blurb from book: ?
My thoughts: So far, the best of the bunch. I’d recommend it to fans of the genre.

I only have one more judged book to read. Yay! Except it’s in first person, present tense. Boo! I guess I can’t complain too much. I am reading romances, so it’s not all bad. But man, I’ll be glad to get back to my own stack of books.

So… If you find a routine is working, are you afraid to mess with it?

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Updates on the House, Writing, and Hockey

We have an official walk-through date on the new house: May 23rd. I will be taking TONS of pictures then (I hope). But today I’m sharing two of the pictures the developer sent and others I was able to take yesterday. We’ve got siding! Okay, partly sided. Inside, it’s all painted and flooring goes down next. Here are the pictures:

All painted!

We have cabinets!

Shot taken from outside (glare from the sun).

This is our bedroom. Door to the left is the

bathroom. Straight ahead through the door

is the kitchen area.

Siding is still being added, but the stone is all there.

Siding being added to the back of the house. Can you tell it's green?

Wish they sent more inside pictures. I want to see the bathrooms! Is that strange or what?

We have a closing date of May 29th. Which means we’ll be moving in the following week (provided I find a mover that won’t charge a fortune). Seems unreal. But I can’t wait. I want it done with.

I finished the revisions to Alien Desires on Saturday. Now I will start the process of re-reading the whole thing and making sure I didn’t screw something up. But I’m so impressed with myself. I not only have been writing up a storm on In Love With a Vampire, but got these revisions done, too. It was a challenge I gave myself and I’m happy to report I succeeded!

Look at that… I am growing as a writer. J

And writing has been going super good, too, along with being FUN again. Right now I have no idea how my WIP will end, but it’ll come to me eventually. It always does!

Tonight is Game 6 of Round 2 between Pittsburgh and Washington. Between this series and the Vegas/San Jose games, I’ll be lucky if I have any nails left on my fingers. These games have been brutally stressful. But hey, at least Vegas won their series last night. No Game 7 for them. Whew!

Wednesday I leave to visit my Mom for a week. Game 7 for the Pens/Caps series just happens to be scheduled on that same day. And I truly have no doubt there will be a Game 7. I just hope I get to WATCH it. I don’t know if Mom has NBCSN. And seeing as I will be just arriving, don’t know how kosher it would be if I turned around and found a place that showed the game. Think that would be rude? Hmmm…

JeffO – Sorry about your team. Even though most Pens fans don’t care for Boston, I didn’t care one way or the other. But man, what was with all that licking?

So… What was the last thing you challenged yourself with? Did you succeed?

Happy Monday!

Stacy

My Top Ten Authors Read and Rain, Rain, Go Away

We’ve been getting a lot of rain. A. LOT.

We thought the basement had sprung a major leak (not a good thing to happen as you’re getting ready to sell the house). Turns out it wasn’t the basement at all. It was the furnace.

Our condenser pump failed.

You’d think those things would come with some kind of an alarm!

But one pump and a new hose later (because wouldn’t you know it, the hose had been leaking for a while, too), all is dry.

I don’t know why the furnace generates so much water. I sure hope we don’t run into that issue in our new house. The furnace will be in the attic. Any leakage there could cause major damage.

I noticed over on Goodreads the other day that I could see which authors I had read the most. So I snipped a screen shot of my top 10. No surprise who number one is. Or number two for that matter. I don’t even think I have all their books listed in Goodreads yet. Doubt I ever get around to adding them, either. Too much work.

Well, I’ve managed to reach the 10K word mark this month. Yay!! And I’ve not only been writing, but getting edits done on Book 5. I have to get my 500+ words written for Book 8 first, though. Then I’m free to edit. So far, I’ve only been tackling a chapter a day, but it’s a chapter more than I’d been working on! If I stay on this track, I’ll have the editing finished by next month (and hopefully a better idea of what the second alien book should be about).

So… Do you wonder who your most read author is? Or do you already know? Please share!

Happy Friday!

Stacy

Wednesday Reads and a Picture of our House in Progress

I’ve been writing EVERY DAY since March 11th. It’s such a wonderful feeling, too. I just hope my project isn’t crap!

Wouldn’t that just be the kicker?

Here’s what I finished reading this week:

Book #12

Dates read: March 19-23
Title: “Twisted Truths”
Year of publication: 2017
Author: Rebecca Zanetti
Genre: Romantic suspense
Series: Blood Brothers #3
# of Pages: 382
Paper or plastic: Paperback
How obtained: Purchased
Blurb from book: Noni is desperate. Her infant niece has been kidnapped, and the only person who can save her is a private detective with too many secrets to count—and more enemies than he can name. A man who walked away from Noni without any warning a year ago, a man who broke her heart. But with Talia’s life on the line, Noni needs his help now more than ever—and this time, she won’t take no for an answer…
    The moment Denver Jones sees Noni, the memories come rushing back. The fire in her eyes. The determination in her voice. The danger of having her in his life. Denver had to push her away once, but now with vicious criminals threatening Noni and her niece, he’ll do whatever it takes to protect them. But enemies from his past are circling, and they’ll use anything—and anyone—to get to Denver.
My thoughts: Great ending to this trilogy, and basically for the Sin Brothers’ series, too. If you like romantic suspense with a little bit of strange mixed in, these two series are for you.

I drove by the new house yesterday evening. It was raining and almost too dark, but I wanted to see what was going on. Here’s a picture!

It’s definitely coming along. Can’t believe I’ll be living there in a couple of months. Whoo hoo!

So… Have you ever worked on two similar projects at the same time? Like, read two books? Or write two books? I have trouble reading two books at the same time, but I’m going to attempt to write two…sort of. While I’m writing Book #8, I’m hoping to edit Book #5. That’s right. #5. It’s my alien book and I finally figured out what the next book in the series could be. I don’t want to publish or submit #5 until I’ve got the second book mostly written. And I’m hoping when I finish the first draft of #8, I can then start on the next alien book while editing/revising #8. We’ll see how that goes. I’ve got to finish #8 and #5 first. J

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Waking Up With the Answer!

You all know I’m revising Ghostly Interlude. I’ve BEEN revising for a long time now. What with my doctor visits and a possible surgery for me last summer and then Hubby’s cancer, it’s a wonder I’ve worked on it at all. But I’m determined to get this story done. I only had one problem…

What should book 3 in this series be about?

I mean… I have book 1 and book 2. I can’t have a series without at least a third. I just can’t.

I got lucky with an idea for book 2. Dean was a character in book 1. But I have no one in book 2 that I could use in book 3. It was a real stumper.

Sunday morning I woke up with the answer. And I could have slapped myself silly.

I don’t know about you, but I LOVE it when that happens. Sure, I’ll have to go in and add a character in book 2, but man, I’ll gladly do that to get this story finished. And then hopefully I’ll be in full-blown mode to start book 3 (of which I kind of already have something started—I just had no idea it would ever be useful!).

Now, let’s see if this will motivate me to finish quicker. I could use a little quick by now.

Looks like the Penguins want to win this the hard way. Two losses in a row! Argh!!! Why do I watch this stuff? Oh yeah, I like the game. Still… Ugh.

So… What gives you heart palpitations?

Have a great Monday!

Stacy

Timing—It Can Suck

I had it all planned out. Packed my laptop. Made sure my Nook was charged. Ready to spend the day editing and reading at the hospital while my hubby had his tonsils removed.

The alarm was set for 5:30am (we had to be at the hospital by 6:30). I woke up at 2:15am.

Apparently I ate something Thursday night that had more than the ingredients listed. Something with a little bug. I was up every few minutes. By the time 5:30 came, I was exhausted.

Did I get any editing done? Nope.

Did I get any reading done? Very little.

Did I get a lot of sleep later? You betcha.

Since hubby has sleep apnea, the doctor wanted to keep him overnight to make sure he wouldn’t have any problem breathing. So I left the hospital early, came home, and crashed.

Then I thought I was gonna die.

I know, dramatics. But I did have a fever of 101 so cut me some slack.

Apparently food poisoning hits 1 in 6 people a year. I feel I’ve been that one too many times. It’s awful and drains you like nothing else can.

By Saturday I was feeling well enough to clean up the mess I had made on Friday (which turned out to be less than I thought—thank goodness!) and take a shower. And I was able to drive hubby home. After that? Yeah, I wasn’t in the mood to do much more.

Really, the timing couldn’t have been more horrible. At a time when my hubby needed me the most, I couldn’t be there. And the time I needed him, he couldn’t. It sucked!

At least by Sunday I felt well enough to finish the edits on A Vampire Wedding and return it to my editor. Something I had hoped to have done on Friday. Or even Saturday. Oh well. Better late than never, right?

So… Have you ever been that 1 in 6? I hope not. I don’t wish that stuff on anyone.

Stacy

Reading Update and Other Things

I have a feeling Wednesday Reads will return next week. If not, the week after for sure. I’ve only got two books remaining to judge and then I’ll be free to talk about my reading! Yay!

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I worked on my newsletter yesterday and plan on sending it out on Feb 9th. So, if you want to see the cover to A Vampire Wedding a week before everyone else and you aren’t a subscriber to my newsletter, better hurry up and subscribe.

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Revisions to Ghostly Interlude are going slooooow. Man, when I write thin first drafts, I write REALLY thin first drafts. I guess that’s what I get when I try to write them fast. Still, it’s a good thing it was thin. While I have a lot of work to do to add meat, I find it easier to delete stuff when I know I didn’t spend so much time on it. And yes, I’m deleting stuff. I know my characters’ motivations so much better now. Maybe once I get past all this beginning stuff my speed will pick up. I can only hope!

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The weather here was so nice on Monday and Tuesday (until the storms came last night, that is). Mid 50s on both days. I even walked outside a bit on Monday to wake myself up! I tend to crash in the afternoon and I don’t really want to drink coffee (caffeine in the afternoon makes me shaky for some reason). But today will be back to seasonal temps (meaning below freezing, I’m sure), so I doubt I’ll do any walking. Unless I really need a slap in the face!

Ahh… But JeffO was right about Groundhog Day. Groundhog predicted an early spring. How he failed to see his shadow on a clear day is beyond me, though. Sheesh!

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So… How goes your reading? How many did you read in January? I read 10. Man, at that rate, I won’t have any trouble reading 93 by December 31st. Only problem is, I doubt I stay at that pace. I do have to write!

Happy Reading!

 

Stacy

I’m Sick and Tired of Getting Hurt!!

Two weeks ago, I went to the physical therapist and was given some exercises to do to strengthen my knee. On Wednesday I went there for a follow-up and was given additional exercises. By Wednesday evening, I had trouble walking on my left foot. Really? I expected if I was to have ANY pain, it would be in my knee!! I have absolutely no idea what I did to my foot, either.

Why? Why? Why? I’m trying so hard NOT to get hurt. I just don’t understand. I swear, I feel doomed to exercise.

I think I might have plantar fasciitis, except the pain is on the back of my heel and it hurts the most when I’m lifting/bending the foot while walking (I’ve had plantar fasciitis before, but the pain was on the ball of my foot and hurt when I put pressure ON it). By Sunday evening it was getting a little better, but I have a feeling I’ll be warming up on the bike this morning before my exercise routine. I will exercise, though. I work on the upper body on Mondays. Maybe by Tuesday I’ll be able to work on the legs without much (or any) pain.

I can only hope. This is such a hard time of year for me to exercise anyway. I have a feeling the fitness center will be busy (all those New Year’s resolutions), which tends to keep me away. But I want to overcome that. Then there’s the winter weather. It hasn’t snowed yet, but I tend to not go when it does. I want to overcome that, too.

Injuries, though… How can I overcome that? Especially when I don’t feel like I did anything to hurt myself. Ugh.

On a happy note, I finished watching “Gotham” on Saturday. I really enjoyed Season 1. Don’t know when I’ll get to Season 2, but it’s on the DVR waiting to be watched. I may watch it with my daughter, since Hubby starts teaching on Thursday nights again next week. But if she’d rather watch “Supernatural” (we’re on Season 9—and I got her Season 10 for Christmas), then I’ll just watch them on my own. Editing will come first though. It has to! I have a deadline to meet.

So… Are you sad you have to go back to work today? I’m not. I’m actually looking forward to getting back into Ghostly Interlude. I love my job! J

Enjoy!

Stacy

Is it Spring Yet?

Woke up yesterday to more snow. Five inches of the stuff. Actually, five MORE inches of the stuff. The stuff we got last week hadn’t melted yet. Heck, it hasn’t gotten WARM enough for anything to melt. That would require the outside temps to be above freezing.

Hopefully, that will all change tomorrow. It’s supposed to get in the 40s. Oh, and it’s supposed to rain. A LOT.

Great. Just what we need. Melting snow AND rain. A recipe for flooding.

Still, I’m ready for spring. February was brutal. I want some warmer weather!!

Today I am attempting to work out in the gym again. Back in January I ended up injuring my leg from walking on the treadmill. Turns out I probably tore my hamstring. Don’t know how I managed to do that. It’s not like I run on the stupid thing. But I’m allowed to ride the bikes and use some certain weights, so that’s what I’m gonna do.

I miss going to the gym (really!), but I’m not looking forward to starting all over again. It’s such a pain. I just hope my leg is getting better. The doctor put me on Mobic and so far it’s working great. Or I healed. I tend to do that after I see the Doctor. It’s like I wait and suffer and when I’ve finally had enough and make that appointment I don’t hurt any more. Never fails. Yeah, you’d think I’d learn and just go at the first sign of an injury, but that would require a working brain and apparently I don’t have one of those. That, or I just don’t like going to the Doctor. Maybe I should go with the second one. What do you think?

I got Blind Temptation back from my daughter on Friday (yay!), so I’m making the fixes to it now. Don’t know if I’ll get the book published in March, but I’m trying. I just want to get it done with so I can concentrate on finishing Ghostly Interlude. Now there’s a book that’s kicking my butt, but I think I came up with something. That tends to happen when I have to work on another project. Oh well, at least I have something to work with when I do get back to it.

I finally watched “The Grand Budapest Hotel.” Not exactly what I thought it would be. I thought it would be a zany comedy. Instead it was zany-weird. I don’t see how this movie was nominated for Best Picture. Makes me wonder what kind of people are on the Academy.

So… If you were to buy a new car today, which car would you buy? I usually have an answer right away for this, but I’ve been so happy with my Xterra, I haven’t wanted another car. And while my husband likes his Solara convertible, he’s been looking at those Dodge Challengers (I wonder if he wants the bright green one like in this picture—I like bright). I have to admit, it would be pretty neat to own one. Not sure I’d want to drive it, though. I like sitting up high.

Have a Happy Monday and try to stay warm!

 

Stacy

The Softest Sheets – Ever!

The last cruise I went on included a stop at St. Kitts. While there, I decided to look for a store the ship had recommended in their shopping excursion talk.

Now, I don’t go on cruises to shop. I like to sight-see. But I went to the talk because I was hoping to win something (I’ll take something free!). I didn’t expect to be interested in anything to buy. Well, I was interested in the jewelry, but not the price tags.

The “presenter” talked about Cariloha and their bamboo products while a pillow was passed around so we could see for ourselves what bamboo material felt like. It caught my attention. The description intrigued me, too.

So… we had time after our excursion and I found the store. The king-sized sheet sets were $199, and I had a $25 coupon. Figured why not. I needed sheets anyway. We took advantage of the free shipping.

After a few weeks though, we hadn’t received our sheets. I contacted the vendor and discovered there was a problem with the shipment in Long Beach. They apologized for the delay and offered me either a free upgrade to their premium sheets (a $60 value), which they had in stock and could ship right away, or credit to shop in their store (a $40 value). I took the upgrade, since I wasn’t sure I would want anything else.

The sheets came in last week. Let me tell you… I’m in LOVE!

They are the most softest sheets ever. And I’m not sweating in them like I was our cotton ones (hot flashes are a bitch—even in the winter). I may just have to buy another set. Or maybe go on another cruise. Yeah, that’s the ticket.

Wait. What do you mean? Wouldn’t you go on a cruise just to save $25 on the best sheets ever? J

But seriously, they are some awesome sheets and I just had to share. And if you’re in the market for sheets, I suggest you give these a try (and no, I’m not being paid for saying this).

^^^^^^^

I finally (FINALLY) finished the content edits of Blind Temptation. Now the book is with my daughter for copy/line editing. This is the career she wants, so I aim to take advantage.

But do you know what that all means???? It means I can go back to work on Ghostly Interlude!! Yay!!!!

Oh yeah, and read some more. Still have those books I have to judge. Two down, though! Whoo hoo!

So… Who got a snow day from work today? Glad I don’t have to go anywhere!

Stacy

Questions for YOU

Yesterday I was all excited about a fix on a scene my editor commented about and then realized the fix would only work if something ELSE had happened earlier. Like two chapters earlier. Yep, I had to write a brand new scene. Not only a scene, a SEX scene.

I don’t know about you, but those things are harder to write than action scenes.

Well, I got it written. Yep, it’s a first draft. But at least it’s WRITTEN! Yay! Still, it looks like I’ll be going over that sucker several more days. So much for thinking I was almost done…

Because of all that, I’m kind of on the dry-side of things to write about, so how about I ask you some questions and you answer in the comments (I got this brilliant idea from another blog I visited—although my questions are different).

1. What did you watch on your television last night?

2. What did you eat for breakfast this morning?

3. What was the last movie you saw in a theatre?

4. How old were you when you were kissed “romantically” for the first time?

And my answers?

1) Supernatural Season 8 (Watching the DVD series with my daughter).

2) I haven’t eaten it yet, but I’m sure it will be Wheat Chex.

3) Into the Woods.

4) 10 (The boy across the street pretty much tackled me on a neighbor’s lawn and kissed me. Well, more like slobbered. I didn’t even think he liked me! I certainly didn’t like him.)

Your turn!

Happy Friday!!

Stacy

It’s Not as Easy as it Looks

No Wednesday Reads this week. I’ve gone another week without finishing a book I’m reading. Aack! How will I ever reach my goal of reading 90 books this year? What’s happening to me? Oh, I know. I’m editing!!!!

This editing project was supposed to be easy. At least it looked easy. My editor didn’t even mark up all that much. But what IS marked is making me THINK!

I know, the nerve of her, right?

Thinking (for me) is time consuming. And then when I FINALLY write something, I have to go over it the next day and make sure it’s decent. Just like you go over a first draft because those first drafts suck, right? Well, so do my fixes. Sometimes. Okay, most of the time.

See??? TIME. CONSUMING.

At least the book will be better when I’m finished. I’d just like to be finished by now. I’m ready to work on my WIP. I don’t have to do a lot of thinking during a first draft, and I could use a little non-thinking writing about now. Heck, I wouldn’t mind a little time to read, either. Well… I did get some reading done yesterday, so not all was lost!

So… Have you ever started a project you thought was simple but ended up being anything BUT? Please share and show me I’m not alone.

Happy Reading.

Stacy