The Grand Experiment: What I’ve Learned From 2 Years of Self-Employment

The Grand Experiment: What I’ve Learned From 2 Years of Self-Employment

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Two years? Really? Wow, that flew. Thanks to hedonic adaptation, everything becomes mundane after a while, even kicking the 9-5 rat race routine to the curb. But this is still the best mundane ever. No regrets. I haven’t spent a weekend in fear of Monday morning for two whole years now! I love what I do, even when I get temporarily sick of certain tasks (editing, barf). What’s New My husband and I recently celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary, which…

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2015 Goal Review, And New Goals For 2016

2015 Goal Review, And New Goals For 2016

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Let’s pretend it’s not February already, you guys. Let’s pretend this is completely timely and topical. Last year, I posted a list of my goals for 2015. Let’s see how well I actually did! * The novel, duh. “The novel,” Blood’s Force, did indeed become a thing by the end of the year. Hooray!! :D It’s available in 2 formats and 4 platforms. In the process of getting it ready for prime-time, I learned a lot about my strengths and…

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Blood’s Force Blog Tour – January 11-22

Blood’s Force Blog Tour – January 11-22

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I’ve been kinda quiet here lately, but that’s because I’ve been blogging almost nonstop behind your backs. Don’t worry, it’s not a betrayal. It’s a blog tour! Starting next Monday and continuing for 2 weeks (minus weekends), I’ll have guests posts and interviews up at 11 different blogs to get the word out about Blood’s Force. Follow the tour every day to learn all kinds of stuff about me, ancient history, the origin of the Sword and Starship series, and…

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I’ve Gone From Escapes To Breaks, And That’s OK With Me (Plus Paperback Giveaway!)

I’ve Gone From Escapes To Breaks, And That’s OK With Me (Plus Paperback Giveaway!)

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Hampton Court Palace, a fascinating destination for history buffs. In early 2013, my husband and I planned our first trip to Europe together. I’d skipped around The Continent before, but my husband hadn’t, so we aimed for a place that was new to both of us, where we wouldn’t have much trouble easing in culturally. London seemed like the best of all possible worlds. I’d only ever flown through London, never visited. And since the UK was full of English…

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What’s On The Calendar – Late 2015 to 2016

What’s On The Calendar – Late 2015 to 2016

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Hey all! I wanted to talk about the important stuff on my workdesk and radar for the next few months. Without further ado … * Working on Harbingers (Sword and Starship Book 2) * Hey look, it’s my life for the foreseeable future! To make this a standalone, I’ve had to completely change the beginning, so I’ve been drafting more than editing thus far. I’m almost at the point where I get back to editing existing content. I’m hoping I…

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Ellis’ Writing and Publishing Toolbox

Ellis’ Writing and Publishing Toolbox

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Powered by coffee, Hello Kitty, and Left 4 Dead. Hey again! I thought I’d give you a behind-the-scenes peek at everything that contributes to my production process, from draft to finished book/story. HARDWARE A room in my house serves as my dedicated office. Up there you see my desk: MacBook Air, laptop stand, cheap mouse, expensive keyboard that makes neat clicky sounds. And omg COFFEE, two mugs a day. Next to the desk is my laser printer, which comes in…

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Sword and Starship Book 2: Rewrites Begin This Week

Sword and Starship Book 2: Rewrites Begin This Week

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So for those who may or may not know: this little adventure started with a manuscript I finished—after many years of hemming, hawing, temporarily quitting, doubling back, and tail-chasing—in early 2014. I hired a lovely editor and passed it her way, thinking it’d need only a few tweaks to be ready for prime-time. Wrong! I hadn’t given the story enough room to breathe. My editor suggested sweeping edits that took me a while to get through, but they were completely…

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The Grand Experiment: What I’ve Learned From 1.5 Years Of Writing Full-Time

The Grand Experiment: What I’ve Learned From 1.5 Years Of Writing Full-Time

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Would you believe I still haven’t tired of this arrangement? The balances in my bank accounts aren’t as high as they once were, but that doesn’t bother me nearly as much as I thought it might. Mental health is way more important. Not once have I ever pined for the corporate world. As long as I have the means to keep freelancing, I will! What’s New The past couple of months have brought some of the most extreme highs and…

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Polish Your Manuscript With One Final Sanity Read

Polish Your Manuscript With One Final Sanity Read

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What? This picture SCREAMS sanity. Last time, I talked about the editing and revision “groove” I got into and rather enjoyed. As you read there, it involved a defined but flexible schedule, a good heaping helping of self-compassion, a blend of making edits directly on my computer and typing in edits made on paper. Some of the edits were rather substantial, basically drafting whole new, fresh paragraphs (or pages). Then there was the matter of all that typing. Data entry…

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Finding My Editing And Revising Groove

Finding My Editing And Revising Groove

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“OK, now I gotta go back over it from the beginning!” When you’re editing a novel, you’ll say this at least 37 times. I was on a blogging hiatus for a while there! Sorry about that. Two major things kept me from blogging for the past while: (1) Both of my cats passing away in August, less than a week apart. (2) My final editing passes on Blood’s Force. Which is a real book now. Holy crap. :D With (1),…

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