March 2018 Updates, Goals

March 2018 Updates, Goals

This is my last blog post before my husband and I fly to Rome, where we’ll be staying from the end of April into May. So yes, my next blog post will be delayed, but hopefully I’ll have some nice stories to tell! Things are getting all too real as I work on the nitty-gritty details, like figuring out what my poor cat is going to eat. He normally eats wet food, but we’ll need to transition him to at…

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February 2018 Updates, Goals

February 2018 Updates, Goals

This is kind of embarrassing, but … I sometimes draft more easily while lying down? The days I’m most productive word-wise seem to be the ones where I’m lying in bed or on the couch. And I definitely brainstorm best away from the computer, with paper and pencil … also often on the floor or in bed. Maybe relaxing all those muscles tells my brain to relax and let words and thoughts out? It doesn’t sound so crazy—but then what…

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January 2018 Updates, Goals

January 2018 Updates, Goals

I can’t believe it’s been a year since Harbingers came out! Amid outlining and drafting and second-guessing and redrafting Book 3 of Sword and Starship, it’s nice to remember that I am actually capable of turning out a decent finished product—and I will, when it’s ready! Not a moment sooner. My creative process is like carving a statue from marble: I have to chisel through tons of rough language and bad ideas before I get anywhere close to the good…

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December 2017 Updates, Goals

December 2017 Updates, Goals

I hope everyone had another wonderful holiday! Among my very generous haul this year was a silly yet cool present to myself: a plasma lighter that just happens to resemble the one my heroine Dame Jessamine uses in the Sword and Starship series for both cigarillos and snooping. Unlike her, I don’t regularly have need of portable fire, but this will make candle-lighting easier. I tend to burn through a good number of those during winter, hoping to make my…

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November 2017 Updates, Goals

November 2017 Updates, Goals

Happy (late) Thanksgiving to whomever that applies! :) Not the best start to the month here: I caught a cold that hit me on Halloween and lasted for a few weeks. Fortunately, it was minor as such things go. Symptoms came and went, but my brain and energy levels weren’t as badly affected as when I had pneumonia or the flu. A few days in, I was back to writing during my scheduled time, although under the blankets in bed….

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October 2017 Updates, Goals

October 2017 Updates, Goals

Happy belated Halloween! We got an extra big treat this year: a paved street! It. Is. Glorious. And hey, I give as good as I get. A giveaway for my mailing list recipients just wrapped up, and I’ve mailed the winner a signed Blood’s Force paperback. If you’d like to be in on the next giveaway, whenever that might be, click here to sign up. You’ll also get some free short stories to tide you over while I work on…

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September 2017 Updates, Goals

September 2017 Updates, Goals

Hello again. This was quite an eventful month! I’ve been frantically trying to do everything possible to protect my credit in the wake of the Equifax hack, while also begging my senators not to jack up my health insurance and kill millions of Americans … again. And, as you see above, our construction adventures continue. When dealing with 70 year-old streets and 100 year-old plumbing, there are always surprises. For instance, did you know it was possible to shake a water…

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August 2017 Updates, Goals

August 2017 Updates, Goals

The eclipse wasn’t terribly dramatic in Pittsburgh. Even with 81% coverage, it just looked like heavy cloud cover (the Sun is kinda bright, who’da thunk it?). Still, the weather was great, and it was really nice how many people came outside to see it, passing around glasses and using telescopes and whatnot. However, 2024 ought to be even more exciting for us! I might be persuaded to drive to a location with full totality. I just have to get over…

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July 2017 Updates, Goals

July 2017 Updates, Goals

Hello again! Another month has flown past—and as you might’ve guessed, that 1-month construction project outside my house has stretched into Month 3. They’ve had to cut into stuff that was finished years ago to lay pipe or whatever; that’s what you see depicted above. Unfortunately, they’ve also ripped out all the greenery that the fireflies used to hang out in. They’re supposed to put it back in and then some, so I’m hopeful for that. Updates: Still outlining book…

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June 2017 Updates, Goals

June 2017 Updates, Goals

It’s been over 3 years since I left the rat-race behind and became a full-time writer! The time keeps flying past. I’m a much happier person overall, and I’ve never once entertained the idea of going back to the grind. Income breakdown (just for fun, $$$ is never the goal): – I’m still making about $300-$400/month writing and editing at The Daily WTF. (Feedspot recently ranked us #29 of their top 100 humor blogs, which is pretty neat!) – My…

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