Failure

Have you ever had a day - week - month - where you felt like a failure? Yeah, I feel like that with my writing. I'm stuck. I was taking a good workshop with awesome templates to use, which helped, but now I feel like I don't have a clue where to go with my story and I can't get out of this funk. I don't know what to do with my characters. I get a few chapters done and BAM! My ideas are gone and I don't know what they should do.
Ugh. I don't know what I need. Maybe more writing reference materials to read up on - yeah, maybe that would help. My friend gave me a book titled "The First 5 Pages" that I've started. So maybe that will help give me a push - I don't know. Feel like the brain's blocked up and I can't get any new ideas to flow. Maybe I'll just bang my head against a wall until I get something.
OK - enough of the pity party.

Lake Placid Pics

Some pics of Lake Placid, NY. I love this place!

To the left is a waterfall along High Falls Gorge - the hubby and I took a hike through this. Very beautiful - but for those who are afraid of heights, stay away! The walkways are suspended over the falls and river.

Below is a pic of Whiteface Mountain - still has snow in May!


This is the little cottage that we stayed in. We've been here twice - the first time was in November 2004, and that's when Jake proposed to me! We love this place! Cathy, the owner, is the best hostess and the cottage is the perfect spot to "just get away"! If you're interested in staying here, just go to this website: www.thehighlandcottage.com

ME above - playing mini-golf.

My hubby, Jake, to the left. We had a wonderful time together.

Crazy life meets kids

So, even though my own normal, insane, hectic world continues to run at that pace, we've now hit the spring months where my kids lives and activities add even more insanity to my daily existence. T-ball, minor league, and softball have begun! And add in that we still have ballet practice for my little one, that all makes for particularly busy weeknights. Just got to love it! Does anyone else have the joys of chaos in their lives? I'm sure I'm not the only one.
So, on we go. The hubby and I took the much needed vacay for the weekend up to Lake Placid. Absolutely loved it! The weather was beautiful and the scenery was perfect. I did get a chance for some writing - actually started revamping an old WIP that I began a while ago. Lots of work left to do on that one. Conal & Riane have jumped ship for now, and Laena's slowly inching her way out of the shadows, but as my reality is chaotic, so is my writing style. I am definitely a "pantser" - constantly shifting gears, changing modes, with barely a set final goal in mind other than to finish a manuscript!!
RWA conference is getting closer and closer each day though and I can't wait to go! I know that Holly and I are going to have an awesome time and I'm very much looking forward to all of the workshops that we'll be taking and all of the wonderful people we'll be meeting. It's an exciting time and I know will be beneficial to both of us. Plus - having a nice vacation with my best friend is the best way to enjoy the time away from home. We haven't had a girls night since we were in high school - definitely long overdue! Hol - we're going to have sooo much fun!!

Lacking Inspiration

Well, the muse comes and then she goes. I haven't written much more than a couple of sentences in the past week, and I feel so un-inspired. I really need something to perk my brain back into motion!! But what?
Holly suggested a little weekend getaway, and I think she's right. I do need some time away - so Jake and I have decided that for our 1 year anniversary (May 13th - ahhh!!!), we're going to go back to Lake Placid and stay in the same cabin that he proposed to me in. I'm really excited to go back there! It is truly the most beautiful little cabin, completely furnished with electricity so it's not like we're roughing it in the woods. :) I can't wait - I'm taking my laptop with me so I can sit out on the deck and get some early morning, before the hubby rises, writing done. We're only going for three days, but I have a feeling those three days will brighten up my mood and hopefully, bring back my writing mind. I really miss it!

Crazy life

So, the new position at work is going well. Not too much has changed, so we won't spend much time on that boring subject. :)
I'm happy to say that my fickle Muse is back!! But she came back in a totally different form. Instead of pushing forward my historical WIP, she has decided that a new contemporary piece is calling for attention. Laena Gravari has appeared, a little broken down from her recent divorce from an egotistical cheating SOB, but returning home to Greece to renew her artistry and try to get ahold of her self-image. Of course, we have her old high school sweetheart that she left behind when her parents moved them to the States who comes into the picture. Alec Demarchis is a bit sour at Laene for leaving him and never communicating with him after she left - (not knowing that her parents had forbidden her from doing so). After some trials and interesting conflicts that Alec and Laena endure, love comes strolling along. Then the cheating SOB comes into the picture looking to beg Laena to come back to him - it'll be interesting to see how she responds.
So, for now, that's my work in progress. I really like these characters and feel that my voice may lie with contemporaries instead of historicals, but we'll see how it turns out. I don't want to abandon Conal & Riane, especially with their story only half told, so I'm sure they'll come out of hiding soon.

Tie the muse to a chair!

So, my muse has decided to abandon me. **sigh** I really need to get that fickle chick back. My historical WIP is slowly dying down, and I really want to have a completed ms before we go to Nationals. UGH!! Conal & Riane just don't want to meet, and getting them even halfway to that point is killing me! My internal editor just does not want to shut off and I find my self re-writing the same ol' boring scenes day after day! Need to get going, write the whole darn thing, and then edit. grrrrrrrr......
Other than that, life is good. Got a promotion at work that I didn't really want, but don't really have a say in whether or not I actually take it. Oh well. A crappy raise too, so we'll see how much effort I actually put into this new position.
Family is doing great - kids are loving the winter season. My husband had a wonderful "daddy" weekend too. Took my daughter with him snow-shoeing on Saturday and my son ice-fishing on Sunday. They had a ball! And I just love it when he does things like that with them - having the father-kid time. And of course, that leaves me the mommy-alone time! Woohoo!!

It's snowing AGAIN!!!

So, it's definitely snowing out again! Yep, we're getting pounded on today - just love it! (not really, no.)
Anyways, something totally awesome happened to me today! One of my co-workers here at my crappy full-time job bought me a roundtrip ticket to Dallas for the RWA Nationals for FREE!!! Totally paid for the whole trip!! He used his airline miles to buy it for me, but doesn't want a single penny for it - just said that when I have my first book published, that he gets an autographed copy. Absolutely bud!! I'd give him the shirt off my back and run around in the snow in my bar for that!! Well, that might be a little extreme, but I don't know - this is serious stuff.
So that is definitely the highlight of my day! This is so cool!!