Back at work, phew! Sometimes the holidays wear me out. I have it easy for the most part. We don’t travel beyond our home for Christmas and New Years. We live more than a few hours away from our relatives, which makes Christmas and New Years luncheons hard to do. I prefer to see them one on one, but secretly miss the fun of a full house with children running around, dogs barking, toes stepped on, family arguments started… You know, tradition!
Read More2016 looks to be a crucial year ahead. On this first day, many of us have resolutions to make or break depending on your motivations. I started my contemplation of possible things I could do better, and bad habits to break, scientifically. No, not really, but didn’t that sound impressive? Bad habits… I looked at mine, and then took a page from Dr. Phil and asked “What do I get out of them?” Enjoyment. So are they bad habits if they bring about so much fun? So I’ll not be breaking any bad habits this year. How about you? At Bliss cottage we have more goals than habits in our resolutions.
Read MoreI was sitting down to write my annual Christmas letter when I heard a very audible sigh. I looked over, and there sat Stephen Murphy. Yes, really. I figured that he was there to offer me support on the endeavor, but as I started making notes, he bounced his axe on the basement floor. I warned him if he cracked the foundation of Bliss Cottage, he would have to fix it. He gave me a baleful look.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I want to write my own Christmas letter.”
I stood up and vacated the chair. His brows knitted and a pout formed. I sat back down.
“How about you tell me what you want to write, and I’ll do the typing. Mind you, the editing is your affair.”
He smiled.
Warning, there may be spoilers if you haven’t read The Siege through Restitution yet. Here goes:
Read MoreHere I am at the computer while many of you are either with family, shopping Black Friday sales or both. I’ve worked a few retail jobs during the holidays, and because of this, I have no desire to join in the insanity. Secret is, there isn’t really any benefit to putting yourself through all of that unless you’ve always wanted to know what a riot feels like. I’ve seen humans go from sweet folks to animals in the seconds it took to unlock the door. Now, that’s scary. Me? I’ll chill here with an almost finished first draft, arguing with Murphy over the last few sentences.
Read MoreAt the moment, I feel like I’m under siege. In my office, I hear the constant pounding of sand. Yes, really. They are repairing and improving Bliss Cottage’s brick patio. It had been undone by a tenacious, burrowing and electricity-chomping chipmunk. You can get away with a lot when you’re that cute. And now, there are several talented and strong individuals working from sunup to sundown on the project. My basement office vibrates. My head hurts from the sound of the bricks being cut. I feel, with all this pain, I should be able to work it into a story, but it would be too horrible to print. Or boring…
Read MoreJust a quick post to update you on my work-in-progress, the “Haunted Series” novel, “A Rose by Any Other Name,” and a few other things that may interest you. The Cin Fin-Lathen book is in the editing stage. It should hit Amazon around Thanksgiving. Thank you all for your patience on this delay. “Unforgivable Cin: An Opera in Three Acts” is a special book, dealing with a sensitive subject, and I wanted to get it right. Don’t worry, Cin’s sense of humor is intact, although, she is minus a few pairs of shoes…
Read MoreAttention, ghosts and ghouls! Halloween falls on a Saturday this year. The weather here will be cool but dry. I expect we will have a record turnout. In our village, the children are allowed to Trick or Treat from five to seven at night. Because it’s Saturday, more parents will be home - not tired from the long Chicago commute - to take part in the holiday. I have so many great memories of Halloween as a child and as an adult, dressing up and taking my children door to door. My children are grown now, but I suspect at least one of them would like to show up at your door and yell, “Trick or treat!”
Read MoreOctober 1st, what kind of happy anticipation or terror does that date bring to you? For me, it brings on happy thoughts. It’s only thirty days until Halloween! I should have Restitution launched by then, my Cin Fin-Lathen book in edit, and I will be finishing up the first draft of the 18th Haunted Series novel. All I plan on doing on October 31st is handing out treats to the Trick-or-Treaters.
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