Friday Five for May 6, 2016

1. Wait. It's May already? Time is flying by! There's three weeks left of school and then my little guy is on summer break. That means I'll be blogging light for June and July. I have some fantastic guests lined up for the next few months, though. If you're interested in doing a guest post, let me know, and I'll be happy to host you.

2. After finishing Totem #4, writing has been slow for me. I started on Totem #5, but I think the opening has fallen lame. It needs a better one, but while I know the rest of the story, I don't have the first chapter yet.

3. I spent April shopping for images from BigStock. I don't even know how many hours I spent clicking through picture after picture, looking for the perfect ones. I have everything I need to create the nine Totem covers, and tons of other spectacular pics for future books. I'd like to do some cleanup on my blog and make new banners, promos for my published books, and teasers for future ones. It will be slow coming, but be prepared for a new design coming before the fall.

4. A big happy Mother's Day to all the moms and like-moms out there! My weekend will be spent visiting the in-laws which means Rocket Science Ice Cream. Love this place because they make ice cream from scratch right in front of you and freeze it instantly with liquid nitrogen. Science has never tasted so good!

5. My final note: I received my contributor's copy of Eldritch Embraces! It looks gorgeous. My short story, "What Lay Below" is a Lovecraftian steampunk romance. Weird mix, but it worked so well. Our household Cthulhu approves!

Wicked Wednesday - when things get tough

You have this fantastic idea. It's shiny and beautiful. You can't wait to start writing. But it won't come out right. The words just aren't flowing. This idea, it needs to be shared. It won't leave you alone.

When things get tough...

Flopping down onto the ground and crying can help release some of the stress. So can eating a tub of ice cream. Though your stomach will hate you for it.

My current WIP is tough. I haven't nailed the protagonist's voice and I'm over halfway through. I know her two sisters very well (and they'll be the protagonists of the next novellas), and her hero is so much fun to write. I don't have a title for the book or the series yet. And yes, that is bothering me much more than it should. There are so many things I need to set up in this first story, I hope I'm doing it smoothly.

I want it to be awesome. The story deserves my best. No. Better than my best. I have to push myself further.

My anxiety is even higher because I put aside the previous novel I started earlier this year because it was tough. Though the problem with that one was different than this.

So now here I am tackling an even bigger project. It's intimidating. But that makes me want to go for it even more.

What do you do when things get tough?

(Sidenote: This photo of my son is of the first time I set him in a pile of leafs. Clearly he didn't like it. Nowadays, if there is a pile of leafs, I can't keep him out of it!)

Tagged!

I've been tagged by Ruth at Ruth + Writing. I've never been a very fast runner. I'm a good hider, though! So here we go with the tag questions.

The Tag rules:
1. You must post the rules!
2. Answer the questions and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you’ve tagged.
3. Tag eleven (or how ever many  you can think of who haven't been tagged) people and link to them.
4. Let them know you’ve tagged them.

Ruth's questions:

1. Would you rather eat ice cream or popcorn? ICE CREAM! That's a no-brainer for me.

2. Who is the biggest influence in your life right now? My son. Our kids influence us in ways beyond what we can ever imagine.

3. What do you do to relieve your frustrations? Write and clean.

4. Can you keep a secret? Yes. Do you have one to tell me?

5. When it comes to books, what is your biggest pet peeve? Whiny protagonists.

6. Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed? Closed. No closet monster is ever going to sneak up on me.

7. Do you have a theme song? Please share. Maybe the Wordgirl theme song.

8. Where would you bury treasure if you found some? In the most obvious spot. Disguise it as something ordinary and out in the open. No one would suspect it was treasure!

9. What book and/or movie could you read and/or watch over and over? The Harry Potter series for both the books and movies.

10. Have you ever done anything illegal? Yes. I jaywalked this week.

11. Is it okay for guys to wear pink? Yes. If it suits their skin tone.

I'm not going to tag anyone. It seems like everyone has been tagged recently. Yet if you want to answer a couple or all of my questions in the comments below, please feel free to do so and entertain me!

1. If you were a character from a TV series, which one would you be?

2. What's the strangest thing in your refrigerator right now?

3. If someone wrote a biography about you, what would the title be?

4. Can you describe an atom?

5. What is the worst job you've ever had?

6. If you couldn't be a writer, what career would you choose?

7. Name five people you would most like to meet.

8. Is Elvis really dead?

9. Crayons, pencil crayons, or markers?

10. What's your favorite amusement park ride?

11. What is your ideal home? (It can be fantasy!) 

I gave them a Fever

I hope everyone had a good long weekend. My son was having a hard time of it and thus so was I. Yet it ended off well last night when we met friends for ice cream. Ice cream makes kids happy. Ice cream makes me happy. Brownie Nugget. And, oh, what big nuggets they were, too!

I got an acceptance last night. My horror short story, "Fever" was accepted by Wicked East Press for their anthology, Under The Stairs. It's always wonderful to have a story accepted, but the icing on the cake is that my friend and critique partner, Cherie Reich will also have a story in the anthology. It makes it extra special to be in an anthology with a friend.

I hope to finish my dark fantasy short story today or tomorrow. I need to start a second edit on my latest manuscript. Here's hoping my son sleeps a good long time this afternoon!