Friday Five for August 19th, 2016

1. Hello, everyone! It's been a while since I've had a Friday Five. Things have been super busy in my world, and then every single person in my household got sick. Not with just a little cold either. Horribly sick. My poor husband still hasn't recovered from his terrible bronchitis after a month. With all of that, I'm way behind where I want to be writing-wise. I'll be blogging only once a week for the next two months in an attempt to catch up.

2. My little guy started grade one, and he's loving school. Grade one is a big jump not only for him, but for us as parents too. It's so different than the fun and play-as-you-learn activities kindergarten. Reading and math assignments, spelling tests, social studies, and science.

3. I revealed the first three of my Totem series covers this Wednesday. It finished up my summer series on the mad science of book covers. I'm immensely pleased with the way they turned out, and I've gotten terrific feedback about them. Now I need to come up with taglines and blurbs. Yikes!

4. I finished revising Totem #3, and I'm ready to start writing the first draft of Totem #6. I'd hoped to be one more book ahead of this, but I'm pushing onward still shooting for my mid-October release date.

5. For the first time in over eight weeks, I'll have a quiet weekend. I have my local critique group meeting, but that's it. I'm going to rest and enjoy some quiet time with a good book.

Have a lovely weekend!

Wicked Wednesday - pleasing the perfectionist

I confess, I'm a bit of a perfectionist. When it comes to certain things, my standards are sky high. This makes me my own worst boss when it comes to writing full-time.

Last week, I was struggling with my WIP. But I pushed through and finished it. The first draft of the first book of the Totem series is done. (Yes, you might notice I even have a name for the series too! No more BS!)

It has to be the roughest rough draft I've ever written. Because I am a perfectionist, it stresses me out. Only in the past few years have I come to accept that my first drafts aren't going to be brilliant. Rewriting does make a good story better. Rewriting again makes it shine even more. Polish, polish, polish until the perfectionist in me is pleased.

My high standards do stress me out, but they also push me forward. I am tenacious. I won't give up on my dreams.

Once upon a time, that dream was to be the next Stephen King. Now I want to be the first Christine Rains. My journey is different from King's and I will savor every step of it. (But, you know, if I happen to end up the next Stephen King, I won't complain!)

Hold yourself to high standards and push yourself to be better. You deserve it.

Friday Five for September 11, 2015

1. I didn't get as much time to write this week, but I passed the 10k mark with my newest project. I finished the first round of edits for the first book in The Paramours series. Not much needed to be changed at all. My editor might send it back to me once more for an okay, and then it can be sent on for formatting. That's when I get my release dates!

2. My holiday horror short story, "All I Want For Christmas" was accepted by 9 Tales for their upcoming release, 9 Tales Told In The Dark. Yay! It will be released late this year. Another one of my stories was short-listed by a pro venue. I've been sending stories to this venue for the last few years, and this is my fourth time being short-listed with them. Maybe the fourth time is the charm!

3. Have you heard of the movie Tusk? It's a Kevin Smith film. A ridiculous shock horror about an insane man who kidnaps people and makes them into a walrus. I expected utter silliness when I sat down with my husband to watch it. What I found instead was brilliance. Not the story itself, but in the performances from Michael Parks and Johnny Depp. I haven't been this blown away by a pair of actors in a long time.

4. It's getting to that time of year where there are a lot of scary movies and shows on TV. When I do my exercises during the weekdays, I don't watch talk shows or soaps. I watch ghost and monster hunters. I've been seeing a lot of commercials for what's coming in October. Here's one show you might not have heard about: Exorcism Live! Yes, they'll be doing a live exorcism. Don't let the ads fool you (like they did me!). They're not exorcising a person. It's a house. I always wonder about these live shows. What do they do if absolutely nothing happens?

5. It's almost the weekend! What are your plans? We have a BBQ & Blues Fest and a hot air balloon festival going on nearby. It'll be the perfect cool autumn weather for it too.

Friday Five for May 1, 2015

1. Congratulations to everyone who made it through the A to Z Challenge! We had a lot of fun with it over at the Untethered Realms blog. Take a break this weekend. You deserve it!

2. I had a rough day at my local critique group meeting last Saturday. It's been a while since they really tore into one of my stories. I almost forgot how rough it was to do that in person. I've been revising this week. Slowly trying to patch up the problems and make my story work.

3. I haven't done any writing on my WIP lately. Hopefully next week I'll get a chance to jump back into it. I'm also slowly making some headway with my reading. So many great books, so little time!

4. It's going to be a sunny weekend here. My son starts tee ball tomorrow. We're meeting up with friends and having a barbecue. Lots of fun!

5. May starts off with a couple of great bloghops. On Monday, Sharon Bayliss is hosting the Writer Mama (and papa!) Bloghop and it's IWSG day on Wednesday. I'll see you all then! Have a wonderful weekend.

Friday Five for June 27, 2014

1. I still haven't managed to catch up on my online stuff since I've gotten back from visiting family. Why doesn't one week away mean at least two weeks of work? So please forgive me that I haven't been visiting many blogs. I'm losing time during the days since my son isn't in school. I'll get back into the swing of things soon. *knocks on wood*

2. I've been working hard on revisions for my publisher. And sorry, I still can't say anything until the contract is official. When will that be? I'm not sure. Very soon, I hope.

3. I've won a few prizes on giveaways recently. I can't believe more people don't enter them. How can you not love free stuff? Gift cards and books are my favorite prizes. I always read and review the books I win too. A win for me and a win for the author. I'm curious, how many of you always enter giveaways when you come across them? Sometimes enter them? Rarely?

4. I can't believe it's the end of June already. The summer is going by quickly. Family visit done and Fourth of July fun coming up next week. Maybe we'll go blueberry picking this weekend. My son is in the middle of his summer literacy class and doing excellently. We spent all afternoon at a park yesterday.

5. Happy Friday, everyone! Have a great weekend. :)

Friday Five for April 25, 2014

1. After today, only 4 posts left for the A to Z Challenge! Wow. Where has the month gone? It's been so much fun. I've really enjoyed doing the Challenge as part of a group. Untethered Realms has a huge X group post coming up on Monday. You get to vote which creature has the most X Factor. Don't miss it! (Psssst, there may be a certain stuffed hippo visiting that day!)

2. My son had a fantastic birthday. He's already talking about what he wants to do for his next birthday! I still need to recover from this one. About a third of our guests were out sick, so we had a lot of pizza and cake leftover. This is the first time in my life where I cannot eat any more leftover pizza and cake. Yeah, I never thought it'd happen either.

3. I've been moving right along with my revisions for WIP #1 this week. These are the most difficult revisions I've ever done in my writing career. But, oh, how the manuscript is shining!

4. For the third time this year, I met a book I couldn't finish reading. I stopped at 9% on my Kindle. It was awful. Last year, I had amazing luck with books. I read so many great ones outside my genre. This year, not so much. At least I'm cleaning out my Kindle library!

5. We have no plans for the weekend except to fix the lawnmower (and then mow) and enjoy the wonderful weather before the rain hits us. Have a great weekend!

Friday Five for February 28th, 2014

1. I did a happy dance on Wednesday after I unchained myself from my desk. I finished the 3rd draft of my superhero WIP. Woo-hoo! I sent it off to my CPs and betas. Then I celebrated with peanut butter cookies. On Monday, I will start revising WIP #1 again. I'm right on track with my writing goals so far this year.

2. It's been a tiring week. I've been babysitting every day. It only reminds me I no longer have the energy of my youth. I just wish the youths understood that!

3. My husband was sick on the weekend, and with stuffed up nose, he snores more than usual. So I spent two nights on the couch. I love my couch. It's amazingly comfy, but it always gives me weird dreams. One dream had 5 good versions of myself fighting 5 bad versions. Not clones. (I don't have access to Alex's cloning machine!) It was more like a spirit battle. It was unsettling. Thankfully when I'm sleeping in the bed, I only fight monsters and not myself, er, my selves.

4. I've been reading a lot lately, and I realized I have a favorite bookmark. Until recently, I didn't care what I marked my pages with. A lot of the time it was just a strip of paper ripped from a recycled scrap. Now I have to have a certain one. Do you have a favorite bookmark?

5. I got some BIG news this week: the 4th book in the 13th Floor series, THE HARBINGER, has been nominated for a BigAl's Books & Pals Readers' Choice Award in the category of Fantasy. I'm honored and excited. Voting starts on March 2nd and runs through to the 12th. Please consider voting for my book. I'll share my cookies with you!

Friday Five for February 14th, 2014

1. Happy Valentine's Day! And it's Friday! Yippee! You have a few hours still to enter to win books from 21 authors in this great giveaway. I'm giving away a digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection. Don't miss out on this chance to treat yourself.

2. As another treat, an interview with my handsome dragonslayer, Xan (from 1303 - THE DRAGONSLAYER) was reposted on Cover Girls yesterday. Go on over for a laugh and some eye candy!

3. I managed to get through critiquing 3 short stories this week. I'm getting nitpickier as I grow as a writer. Am I more so with myself? I think so, but I know I'm still biased at times. Thankfully I have such wonderful CPs and betas to help me. I also made the halfway point on my second draft with my #2 WIP. (#1 WIP is with CPs and betas right now.) I might be able to keep on track with my goals and finish the third draft of #2 by the end of the month.

4. I cut up a ton of strawberries for my son's preschool class today. They're having a little Valentine's Day party. He's not quite so excited about today. More often he asks if he's four yet. He knows he turns four in April, and he really wants to be four!

5. I have my local critique group meeting tomorrow. I sent in my first chapter from #2 WIP. I do wonder what they'll think of my superheroes. That's the only plan I have for the weekend. What about you?

Friday Five for January 31, 2014

1. I finished the 3rd draft of my WIP. Yay! Right on schedule with my goals for this year. It's been sent to my CPs and betas. Now I wait. Is anyone done reading yet?! Waiting is the hardest part. Best I get started on the revisions for my superhero WIP.

2. I sent my short story for the Untethered Realms anthology to be revised. Ahead of schedule. Though I didn't write it this month. I can't count it as one of the short stories for my goals this year. Novels come first this year, though. And querying. Yikes!

3. Oh! That reminds me: thank you to all of you who left tips on my Wednesday post about querying. Those were really helpful. I have a specific publisher in mind that I want to try first. If I have no luck there, I'll make a list and start sending queries out in small groups.

4. I have a parent-teacher conference this morning. Why do I feel so nervous? I know my son is smart, sweet, and well mannered. The other day my husband was playing Flow on his iPhone and the boy wanted to give it a try. He picked it up right away. A genius! Then later in the day he threw a fit to take down the bathroom because the ice cubes I gave him to play with in the tub were melting. Yup. I have to keep reminding myself he's just 3.

5. I'm doing all right for my goals this year. I get an A+ for revising, but only a D for managing to balance writing and networking. Yet I get a B+ for relaxing before bed and going to sleep at a reasonable hour. I've only had to have one nap this month. This is a huge improvement over last year when I wanted to nap five days of the week because I was so tired.

It's Friday! Woot! Have a wonderful weekend.

Friday Five for January 3, 2014

1. Hello, and in case you didn't hear my cheer, Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful holiday season. Now it's back into the groove. I'm setting a schedule for myself for blogging and networking. I need a better balance between writing and everything else I need to do as a writer. I'm sticking to the blogging schedule I created last year which worked very well.

   Mondays - Reviews, guest posts, and other author promotions. (If any of my writer friends would like to do a guest post on my blog, please email me.)

   Tuesdays - Teaser Tuesday

   Wednesdays - IWSG and Wicked Wednesday

   Fridays - Friday Five

2. I managed to get myself on Feedly earlier last week. Yes, that's how long it's taken me to get a new reader since Google Reader went away. I'm slowly adding everyone on to my feeds. It's taking a while since I can't figure out how to import my Blogger list to it. My hope is this will make visiting blogs much easier for me. I do return comment when someone comments on my blog, but I need something to help me keep all my blogs organized.

3. I've also been organizing the people I follow on Twitter into lists. I've started this about four weeks ago, and it's helped greatly with keeping up with people that get lost in the main feed. I like it, too, because I can retweet more efficiently. Tip: retweeting helps those authors and you too. Sometimes they'll retweet you in turn. I've gained more followers in December than I have since the beginning of 2013.

4. I've been making excellent progress revising my current WIP. I'm excited about how it's starting to really shine. I'll be querying the manuscript this year to publishers. I already have a few in mind. I'm reminding myself to take a deep breath and not rush it. Sometimes it's difficult to do so when I really want to share it with the world.

5. I had a lovely and relaxing holiday. My husband stayed home for a week, and we made no plans whatsoever. Family visits were done in November. We went on family hikes, lazed around some days in our pajamas, and ate way too much junk food. My son was spoiled. He got the rocket he wanted from Santa. It was awesome! A great way to end a terrific year.

Friday Five for August 30, 2013

1. First, I'm all giddy over Heather Musk's thoughts on THE ALPHA. She talks about Stefanie's strength as a wolf and a person. Pop on over and share your thoughts on the book.

2. I've been reading a lot this past month. A bunch of great indie books as well as big series like The Last Apprentice by Joseph Delaney. (Thank you so much to Clare Dugmore for recommending it to me!) I'm trying to keep up with reviews, but I don't have enough blog dates open for them all. On Monday, I'll have my review for POLAR NIGHT by Julie Flanders up, and later on in September, I have one for INDIESTRUCTIBLE.

3.  I'm way ahead of schedule for proofing the novellas for the 13th Floor Collection. I've also gotten a headstart on writing posts for the blog tour in October. It feels good to know I have a lot of breathing room. It's a big difference from earlier this year when I was frantic trying to meet my deadlines.

4. Having my son back in school has done wonders for both of us. He's excited every day we go to school, and he's even used the bathroom there by himself. A big deal for a boy who hates public bathrooms! I feel refreshed having three mornings a week to myself. I'm less stressed. By the end of the summer, I was feeling pretty frazzled. Next Wednesday is my first day to be the teacher's assistant. (Since it's a co-op nursery school, each parent has to volunteer ten times for the school year - about once a month - and help in class as well as bring the day's snack.) It's actually a lot of fun. I've always been a nerd when it comes to school. I love to go even when I'm not in class.

5. It's the long Labor Day weekend. We have absolutely no plans. It's lovely. I am ready to relax, maybe do some swimming at the lake and hiking, and sleep in. Eight o'clock is sleeping in for me! An extra hour makes all the difference. Enjoy your weekend, folks!

Friday Five for August 23, 2013

1. I want to first give a HUGE thank you to Heather Musk at Reading, Writing and Everything In Between. She started something new on her blog called Book Thoughts where she'll share her thoughts on the books she's reading every Thursday. Over the next six weeks, she'll be featuring the novellas from the 13th Floor series. She already has her thoughts on THE MARQUIS posted. Please stop by and have a read. She hit on exactly what I was trying to do with that first story.

2. I'm thankful that my son started preschool this week or else I wouldn't have had any time to be productive. I got my revisions done for my short story based on my CPs' critiques and sent it out to my beta readers. So far everyone loves the bonus story for the 13th Floor Collection. I put all the novellas and the short story together in one document to edit it for the collection, and it's over 139,000 words. Wow. I wrote, revised, and put all that out in a year? I'm a bit in shock and giddy with it.

2.5 My son had an excellent first week of school. He's comfortable with the new class and his teacher. He makes no complaints when I leave. Yay! I had my first school meeting, and I was saddled with more responsibilities. Not a huge deal, but I would've preferred to know these things before they were suddenly thrust upon me, and I had no clue what I was doing. I'm lucky to have some good helpers, though.

3. I sent out the info and cover for The 13th Floor Collection last night. I had a long list of people volunteering to help out. I'm so very grateful to you guys. You're awesome! Please forgive me if I forgot you on the mailing list. Just send me an email or leave me a comment if I forgot you or if you'd like to be part of the cover reveal on September 13th.

4. Have you heard of this wonderful group of speculative fiction writers called Untethered Realms? *wink, wink* This week, we all wrote a little something with the prompt: "awesomesauce." It's so much fun to see how different each one turned out.

5. Did you get a chance to peek at my workspace on The Writing Nut's blog this week? Please pop on over if you haven't yet. Here's another look into my world. I was excited to return to the library this week with my son's return to preschool. My usual spot is in a comfy chair at the end of the sci-fi/fantasy section, but unfortunately, that chair with its little table is gone. (You can see in the picture below there's a big empty spot by the windows where it used to be.) So I settled into the little desk with my laptop. It's not quite the same, but I'm trying out new spots. Hopefully I'll find a new favorite.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Friday Five for June 28, 2013

1. A frustrating week for managing to get time to revise. Oh, did I mention I finished THE GHOST? Yay! Well, the first and second drafts are done. I've been worried about it, but one of my CPs has declared it's her favorite in the series. But yes, revisions. Our power has gone out twice now with all the summer storms passing through. I lost all of Wednesday. And there are more storms in the forecast for the next seven days. Yikes!

2. Even with that frustration, I had a wonderful surprise yesterday morning. THE MARQUIS received a 4.5 star review from Night Owl Reviews. It's now one of their Top Picks! If you haven't picked it up already, it's free for all e-readers.

3. I was inspired to write a new story by my visit to the dentist Wednesday. I had a crown fitted. The last of my silver fillings is gone. I thought about how the dentist and the hygienists must hear all sorts of weird teeth stories. But what if it was a dentist office for supernatural beings? Yup, a supernatural dentist. Could be really fun!

4. I've been enjoying a lot of outdoor time this week. Between storms, my son and I have been out in the pool, at the park, and in the woods. We put on tons of sunscreen, but thankfully he tans better than me. He's getting a few freckles, but not as many as have erupted on my arms. I don't brown, I stay red. Red and freckled like I'm some weird lobster mommy!

5. Next week I'm still sticking with my regular blogging schedule even with Canada Day and Independence Day. Join me for a great post by a special guest on Monday and July's IWSG on Wednesday. Have a fantastic weekend! Relax and kick back.

Friday Five for May 3, 2013

1) I haven't done a Friday Five in so long. I still have a bit of an A to Z hangover. It was a great month, but boy, does that take a lot out of you. My A to Z Challenge Reflections post will be on Monday.

2) I've been working very hard on my revisions for THE ORACLE & THE VAMPIRE. This book has been a roller coaster ride. I didn't think I'd have it done on time, but don't worry! Thanks to my fabulous CPs and beta readers, I will have it ready for the 13th. My blog tour schedule is set. The cover reveal for the final book in the series will be on May 17th. Be prepared for a big surprise!

3) May is going to be a tremendously busy month for me. I have something going on every weekend and way too much during the weeks. I'll be easing back on the blogging except during the tour. Once the tour is over, I need to find a good balance between writing and networking. I'm losing an hour or two a day since my son only naps two or three times a week now. It's time I set a schedule that allows me to do everything I need to do even if it isn't as much as I want to. Not only must I find the balance, I need to allow myself to feel okay about it.

4) My son only has three more weeks of preschool left before his summer break. It was looming over me, wondering what to do with him, but I've planned several activities. At least one a week. Then there are play dates and lounging in his new big pool at home.  Plus we'll be visiting my family in Canada for a week in June. It'll go quickly. I need to get as organized with my writing time as I am for stuff with my kid!

5) I'm still thinking on what I'll do after I finish the 13th Floor series. There are a lot of possibilities. I'm still giving serious consideration to revising an old manuscript and querying it. Yet more and more, it seems self-publishing is what is still best for me.

Have a wonderful weekend!

NaNoWriMo 2012 update - three days in

My current word count: 7142

I've had a good start. If my son naps for two hours, I can write about 2000 words in that time. I promised myself I wasn't going to pressure myself this time around. If I only make the minimum word count or not quite that much, it'll be okay. So far, so good. No NaNo stress.

I'm writing a superhero story called "Super Famous." A young superhero wants international fame, but when her desire for the spotlight clashes with doing what's right, she has to choose what sort of superhero she really wants to be. My protagonist is turning out to be a very strong character and sort of bossy. Okay, really, really bossy! Good thing she's about to be taken down several notches. BWUHAHAHAHA!

I'm also really happy that I've been able to write in the afternoons, because I've been revising at night. It's like I'm doing NaNoWriMo and NaNoRevMo at the same time! (Except I'm working with a novella instead of a full novel.) I'm revising 1301. I'm nearly halfway done. It's been rough. The first two pages took over an hour to edit. It's very different than the original. Hopefully in a good way. I think if I can get it done by the end of next week, I'll be able to make my tentative December 13th release date.

Busy, busy! The clocks turn back an hour tonight. I don't know if I'll get an extra hour for anything. If I'm real lucky, my son will sleep in and I can use that hour for sleeping!

All my fellow NaNomites, keep on going! So many of you have gotten great starts. And if you haven't, don't worry. There's still 27 more days to go!

2012 Writing Goals

I didn't do nearly as much writing as I wanted to this year, but I learned a lot about the craft, networking, and critiquing. Learning how to tear apart someone else's story makes me a better writer in the end when I do the same for myself. Connecting with other writers has also helped encourage me and taught me so much. You guys are the greatest!

Goal #1: I want to get back to writing one short story a month and submitting it. I did this for a few years before my son was born, but I lost a lot of momentum when I had a newborn to care for. This will also mean I will have one new short story to present to my CPs and writers' group every month. My lessons in critiquing will continue.

Goal #2: Try to get one short story polished to such a degree that it is published in a SFWA approved publication. This is a very difficult thing to do. I want it, though. I want it so much. It will take work, work, and more work, and whole load of originality and great storytelling.

Goal #3: Revise and submit three of my paranormal romances: Witch's First Rule (mainstream adult paranormal romance), A Lion's Heart (erotic paranormal romance), and Sorrow Phage (urban fantasy with a romantic subplot). It's going to take a lot of time. Revising is one of my least favorite things to do. Yet marketing it properly when I submit a novel is something I like even less. I will take my lessons learn and apply them, and hopefully *knock on wood* I'll have a novel with a wonderful press next year.

Goal #4: Complete the A to Z Blogging Challenge in April. I'm very excited about this challenge. I think I might do a story that covers all 26 days. The tricky part will be making it apply to each letter. I also realized that April will be a hectic month for me. My son's and husband's birthdays, and we'll be visiting my family in Canada for a week. I'll have to make sure my blog posts are written beforehand.

Goal #5: Complete the NaNoWriMo challenge in November. It might be my only chance next year to write a new novel.

Whew. That sounds like a lot, but I have the whole year. I can do it... right?

What are your writing goals for 2012?

Revising, planning and deciding

This week I'll be doing some more revisions on my latest WIP. Hopefully I'll get the majority of it done before November. I might send out my first query for it on the weekend. The cover letter and synopsis have been worked over about ten times now. Are they perfect? No. I don't think I'll ever get a cover letter and synopsis perfect, but they're good. Much better than what I started with.

I did some planning for my NaNo novel. I usually don't plan ahead and I'm finding it difficult to do so. I gathered a list of names and monsters from the net. This will keep me from searching for something online when I should be writing. I have all the main characters named, described and generally settled into the plot. That really means I know who the good guys and bad guys are. I know the general overall plot. I know how it will start and how it will end. The middle, well, I have no idea. I tried to plan out each event, but after the first five, my muse smacked me with a stop sign. I'm not allowed to know until I get there. That's how it usually goes with my writing. I know it might drive some people bonkers, but I like the surprise. I like just writing and seeing where it takes me. Do my stories make sense that way? Yes, they do. Somehow I'm able to keep everything together. Sometimes I'm jealous of the plotters, because it seems it would be much easier in the long run. Yet I'm happy to be a pantser. (I really wish there was a different word for that!)

I still haven't decided on a Halloween costume yet. I went out this weekend, but there wasn't anything that caught my eye that I could afford. I thought about just going in a silly outfit as a character from someecards with a little poster board around my neck with the sarcastic saying. Ah, those ecards make me laugh!

 

 My other idea was making a big poster with a hole cut out for my head and design it as a MySpace page for a zombie. When I don't get enough sleep, I look like the dead!

Finally, please come by on Halloween when I'll have a special treat for you.

Reading entries and a bit of the naughty

Welcome to all my new followers and hello again to the great people already here! The Campaign has been a lot of fun so far. I was nervous, but I'm over it now. There are so many encouraging and inspiring participants. I've visited all the talented folk in my Paranormal Romance group. I'm slowly working my way through the list of people who have completed the first challenge. It's slow going, but I'm having a lot of fun reading everyone's work. There's over 300 entries now. Wow.

I've done some more revising on my latest WIP this week. The fourth round is almost finished. I have the itch. I want to submit it. I want to get it out there and see what happens. It's taking a lot of will power to resist. I want to make sure it's the best story it can be. It's so hard to be patient, but I know it will be worth it in the end.

I have other novel ideas bouncing around in my head. It seems they all want attention this week, but I haven't even picked the Cheerios off the floor yet. I also need to write a little something for my writers' group. I have to have something in by the weekend if I want it critiqued. I want to write some science-fiction, but all my ideas are too big for short stories.

Last but not least, Erotica Quarterly #4 published by Pill Hill Press is now available. My short story, "Snow Strangers" is included in this anthology. My first erotica publication!