I confess I've always loved the lure of an instant win, doesn't matter if it's a card store scratch off or the slot machines at a casino. If it's going to take my money in exchange for a smile and a dream - I'm there!

I'm a sucker for the instant scratch-offs and usually end up with at least one on my way out of the grocery store each week. In fact, when my boys were little and they still came shopping with me, I'd buy one for each of us (does this make me a evil?  Have I corrupted my kids into joining the redneck retirement fund mentality?)

My problem has always been taking the winnings and leaving the store with the money in my pocket and NOT in the form of more scratch-offs. (Which is the big reason I am monitored closely on any and all trips to the casino with the hubby! He takes my slot winnings and walks away, the creep.)

So, here I sit on Monday morning with three winning scratch-offs on my desk (don't get excited, they total $24, it's not like I'm running away to the Bahamas on my lucky strike here.)  Before I head out to the store later today, I'm deciding just how to split up my loot. Half tickets, half cash? All tickets? All cash?

Ahhh... the decisions.

Fiber tip for this week:

Eat two apples every day. Because apples are a good source of pectin, a soluble fiber that contributes to a feeling of fullness and is digested slowly. A 1997 study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that 5 grams of pectin was enough to leave people feeling satisfied for up to four hours. Oh my, you mean Mom might have been on to something when she said "an apple a day keeps the doctor away?"

I try to buy organic when I can, but even if you don't, apples pack quite a punch for their small size.

(Maybe I'll buy some extra apples with my scratch off winnings!)

Current Mood: Playful

Now that the contract has been officially signed I can start giving a few more details!

I sold my paranormal romance, A FISTFUL OF FATE to Lyrical Press!

Would you die for the one you love - twice?

Past life memories, a long-held grudge and a love spanning two centuries will unite an 1806 blacksmith executed for murder with the soul of his true love during a present-day reenactment that becomes all too real.   

Current Mood: Esctatic

Just when I had my plans for world domination all figured out, I had to go and find this.

Drats.

Looks like I'm in need of Plan B! Anyone know an evil chemist? I'd specifically like to (a) be split in two (b) freeze time to get more done in a day and (c) make myself invisible from time to time.

Current Mood: Alarmed

I've also been forced to accept the fact that sitting at the computer writing all day can NOT in any way be considered exercise. (I have been told reaching for the coffee cup, doing butt crunches while sitting on the chair and even crossing the kitchen to refill the coffee cup are not real exercises..bah!)

I guess it's time for some changes.  I've started looking at ways to get more fiber in my diet and every Monday I'll be posting something that I've found. I've also been talked into walking every day - gasp! As hard as it sounds, I've been assured that the emails, the blogs, my writing groups and yes, even my manuscript will be just fine without me if I'm not in constant contact with them over the 'net. (I've promised to only listen to music while I'm walking and NOT to check my email!)

First stop today: Read about National Nutrition Month at their website: http://www.eatright.org/nnm/

Facts about fiber: 

Fiber, in basic terms, is the indigestible parts of plant foods. It is the husk on the grain of wheat, the thin strands in celery, the crunch in the apple, the casings on edible seeds. Fiber helps to protect you from heart disease (yes, even women get heart disease so listen up ladies!), cancer, and digestive problems. Depending on the type of fiber (yes, there are more than one!), it lowers cholesterol, helps with weight control, and regulates blood sugar. The point here? This is one nutrient you don't want to miss! But did you know most people get only 12-15 grams of fiber a day-- and that's below the recommended 25-30 grams. So if you're cutting the carbs for weight loss, you might also be cutting the fiber and that's not a good thing. 

Here's how to sneak "good carbs" and extra fiber into your daily diet with a minimum of effort.

 Eat cereal every day for breakfast.  Aim for a whole grain, unsweetened cereal (so, Captain Crunch is probably out?) with at least 4 grams of fiber a serving. Just eating any cereal might be enough, however. A University of California study found that cereal eaters tend to eat more fiber and less fat than non-cereal eaters. Healthy, high-fiber cereals you might want to consider include Kellogg's All-Bran Original, Kashi GOLEAN, and Kellogg's Raisin Bran.

OR, how about a muffin? Here's the original Kellogg's All-Bran Muffin Recipe

Ingredients

The question most often asked to every fiction writer is about where we get our ideas.

If only it were an easy question to answer.

The best advice I would give to anyone thinking about putting pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard would be to pay attention to your thoughts.

I carry a small moleskin notebook in my pocketbook at all times. I listen to the banter of the people around me on lines, at work, in the stores (dialogue is my weakest link - while I can talk a blue streak, writing it seems to paralyze me, go figure.) If something catches my attention - a turn of phrase I haven't heard before, a slang word - I write in my book.

While in the car, out walking or exercising most of us listen to music. Have you listened to the words lately? There are some songs that just make you move, but others have a story, an emotion that jiggles at the heartstrings or pulls at a memory. Sometimes it sparks a "what if" moment that before you know it has characters attached or the beginning of a plot! Take notes...your imagination is calling you.

Watching TV or at the movies? Have you ever thought you would have ended it differently? Change up the characters and try to change the ending to suit you.

I'd like to say the corner coffeeshop has fresh ideas every morning to serve up with your grande mocha latte, but it's just not that easy. Most authors will tell you there actually are no new ideas, it's all in how we spin them that makes that idea seem fresh and new.

So grab your voice recorder or your favorite pen and a pad and start to pay attention to what's going on around you. Take notes when your blood pressure spikes or are overwhelmed by a good deed. Listen and observe.

Then when you sit down to write - read those notes, remember the feelings, let the characters run free in your imagination and you just might have a story in there!

Is every idea book worthy? NO. And that really isn't the point here. Even great ideas need to be developed, nutured into something that can grow to be a great book, it all takes time. But you never know where the next great idea is going to come from. The point is to be ready for it when it hits!

Go forth and take notes, open your mind and grab those ideas as they rush by.

Make it a saucy weekend!

Current Mood: Mischievous

We've got drugs, drugs and more drugs.

And a teenager with an attitude.

My life is complete.

Between our visit last week to the doctor and our visit just a few days ago, I think I walked out of the office with an entire prescription pad full of medications, instructions and notes to the school on what the Middle-Guy can and cannot do.

Thank god for the iTouch I got for Christmas. I was able to load up all the details (yes, my friends, organization!) because I damn straight needed an agenda to keep track of all the different times the kid needs to be medicated and all the different requirements for each one.

So, this morning being the wonderful mom I am (no, that is not sarcasm, I really am wonderful  ) I got the Middle-Guy up early enough to get ready for school and eat breakfast - one of the meds specifically says, "take with food."  Of course eating breakfast is not the top priority of my teenager when a few more minutes in bed is the option - which led to the following conversation two minutes before the bus was due to arrive:

ME: "You aren't suppose to take those two little pills on an emtpy stomach."

MiddleGuy: "I didn't. I took it with Vitamin Water."

ME: "That's not food. Take a granola bar to the bus stop."

MG: He left the room (I'm sure there was eye rolling, but I can't be positive)

ME: Followed him. "Toast? Cereal? You still have two minutes."

MG: Back in the kitchen he takes out the Corn Flakes in a tupperware container, flips open the lid and shoves his hand inside. One handful of flakes gets shoved in his mouth. He smiles. "Cereal. Done."

Why do I bother?

We go back to the doctor next week to check the progress with the new meds. I'm thinking of asking for a little something for myself

Details on my publisher, expected release date and excerpts will all be posted when I get them.

Hubby is home this morning too - so my celebration blueberry waffles will be ready any minute...

Cheers!

Current Mood: Esctatic

Sometimes letting go of the past or accepting what came before can prove to be a difficult thing.

Before email and facebook we were left with just memories of past friends and loves. Now, good or bad - logging in to your facebook or opening your email could bring you face-to-face with recollections you might either embrace or would have preferred to keep hidden in the recesses of your mind.

As a writer, I often ask questions. One question I recently asked both friends and family was, "if you had the chance to go back to high school and college, would you? Would you do things different?"

My immediate response was "YES!"

But my husband was just as strong in his "NO!"

My reasoning was that I would have not listened to the naysayers and I would have pursued my love of writing waaaayyy  sooner that I did. I wouldn't have written just for myself and then thrown away all those manuscripts without a second look. (Yes, I did throw out quite a few...oy)

But, my husband looks at the question from a completely different way saying, "every choice we've made, every relationship we've shared (good or bad) shapes us into who we are at any given time."

Would we have met and fell in love if we'd both chosen different paths? Would we have moved to California for seven wonderfully warm years? Who's to say.

As a writer constantly drawn to ways to give my characters traits and lives that people can relate to, his idea makes perfect sense and I've spent a lot of time contemplating just this theory.

Along the line of thought that choices we've made shape who we are today - what about the paths we've taken in a past life (if you're into that sort of thing - which I am  )  Could fears, hope and dreams of a past life correlate with the person we are today? I know I have a very unnatural fear of railroad tracks, I will drive MILES out of way to avoid driving over them. Is that just a crazy phobia on my part - or is there something deep down in my soul that screams out in fear when those railroad tracks come into view forcing me to take a detour?

Lucky for me the month of March finds my local RWA writing group hosting a workshop on Past Life Regression as a tool to creating memorable characters! The best part is you don't have to belong to RWA or Dunes & Dreams Romance Writers to take the workshop. (And you can take the workshop in your pajamas (woot!) since it's an online workshop given in our forum. You can come and go at your leisure giving yourself plenty of time to reflect on your past.

*****PERMISSION TO FORWARD GRANTED AND ENCOURAGED *****

Dunes & Dreams RWA Chapter 215 (from Eastern Long Island) present their March 2010 Online Workshop.

http://www.dunesanddreams.org/writing-workshops

Cost: $10 D&D members, $25 all others. Payable in US funds only.

March 1 through March 29: Past Life Regression for the Writer’s Soul: A New Approach to Character Creation with Dawna Richard

Blurb: Have you ever had the feeling that you have been to a certain place or time or experienced reoccurring dreams? Have you had a lifelong phobia that you have no explanation for? This could be an indication that you have lived before. Whether you are interested in exploring the possibility of a past life or you are just looking for that next story idea, this class is for you. Learn a little about yourself and unleash a plethora of new ideas along the way. Through past life regression/self meditation techniques, you will have the chance to explore the workings of your mind and gain the tools to uncover a story and characters waiting to be written.

Bio: Dawna Richard is a founder and lead investigator of California Paranormal Research and Enlightenment. She has more than 15 years’ experience with reading Tarot, past life regression, and paranormal research.

She lives in sunny California with her husband, son, and three dogs. When she’s not working or investigating haunted locals, you can find her pursuing her goal of becoming a published author under the name Kylie Dawn.

DATE: March 1 – March 29

Registration deadline is February 28th.

PLACE: Dunes & Dreams RWA FORUM (Not a yahoo loop)

Registrants will receive a login password to the workshop forum several days before the workshop begins to allow ample time to become familiar with the forum or to notify the coordinators if you have trouble logging in.

COST: $10 Dunes & Dreams RWA Members/ $25 all others (US funds only – paypal or checks)

 
CANCELLATION AND REFUND POLICY: No registration fees will be refunded. All payments for a workshop must be received by the registration cut off date. Payments received after the cut-off date can be applied to a future workshop of the
applicant's choosing.
 
If a workshop is canceled due to unforeseen circumstances, such as instructor inability to teach class, registration fees will be applied to a future workshop of the applicant's choosing.
 
Hope to see you in class!

Registration form and more information:

 http://www.dunesanddreams.org/writing-workshops or

email the coordinators at workshops.ddrwa@gmail.com

Make it a Saucy Weekend, give someone you love an extra hug, don't be afraid to speak your mind and do one thing you didn't plan on!

Current Mood: Esctatic

Have you ever seen the demonstration with the glass jar filled with rocks, pebbles and sand?

The idea is your day is represented by that empty glass jar.

First in, the rocks, the most important obligations - your family, your job, etc.

The jar looks pretty full, but you can still dump in some pebbles that find the crevices. The pebbles are the lesser obligations, maybe some appointments like hair or nails? Maybe it's shlepping the kids to lessons and scouts?

Now the jar looks packed tight, and then some sand gets poured in - again finding places to settle. Because you know there's more to your day that just major obligations and being the taxi. The sand is helping with homework, talking to your friends and family, catching up on emails, etc.

Now the jar is completely full isn't it? Wait. A glass of water is added and it fills the jar.

What is the water? Is it the time you veg out in front of the TV? Is it the moments completely to yourself you THOUGHT you couldn't make time for?

The idea is we all have to juggle the rocks, the pebbles and the sand - but even that little bit of water can still fill in those empty spots, find a home in your day. And you know what? You can't leave it out. For that jar to be filled to the brim, you need to have those YOU moments. Even if it's just five minutes with your favorite drink, the time alone in the car to and from one of the "rocks or pebbles" in your jar - you need to recharge those batteries.

We have a saying in our house (to be fair, it's the hub who says it) "If Mom isn't happy, the whole house isn't happy."  He's right. Even though I don't have much to do with the financial stability of the family - I'm the spiritual one, the emotional glue. If I'm frazzled, the whole house is out of whack. (If you've read my blog before you know this does not mean I am organized...me organized? hahahahaha)

How do you find the balance, the time for yourself to recharge? We're all different and have varying methods of reducing the stress levels of our lives. For me,  I know that writing even that one page gets me closer to my next contract. Releasing my words to the page is my therapy - my emotional glue. I get up earlier than everyone else to give myself those quiet moments to get the words on paper. At night, it's that cup of tea and anything chocolate (and lately, followed up with tums chaser, but I digress.)

It's what I do.  How do you sneak in those "you" moments? 

Here it is, Fiction Friday again and I've been toying with the idea of whether or not to post about this show all week.

Why?

Because it bugs me, and I'll probably get lots of disgruntled comments about how closed-minded I really am - and for a woman who writes romance (and sometimes erotic romance) do I want that rep?

Let me start by saying this is nothing against Jenna Elfman - I like the actress, I think she's very talented.  I just hate the premise of this show and think it's a waste of her talents. (And the fact that Grant Show isn't featured enough - but I digress...)

I assure you I am not closed-minded and I am the first one to agree that normal is state of mind and not one to be foisted upon people by society, religion or government. BUT, have we sunk so low as a society that the whole premise of this show could be considered a feel-good comedy?

In case you haven't seen this "gem," the premise is older woman picks up much younger guy in bar, goes back to his flea-bag apartment to have unprotected sex. Which results in her becoming pregnant. Now she's shacking up with "the baby-daddy" as he's referred to in the show and still dating guys her own age - while forging some weird live-in relationship with the younger guy.

Unless the humor is about our society being morally bankrupt, then yeah, I get THAT.

Unfortunately, my household is contributing to the ratings on this loser because of its time slot (which actually fits the name of the show - "accidentally on purpose") because if it wasn't sandwiched between two winners like "How I met your mother" and "two and half men" - I'm sure it would have been cancelled by now. So, my hat is off to the time-slot execs at CBS for earning your money with that smooth move.

I guess this conservative girl does take heart in the fact that Jenna's character didn't go the obvious and just have an abortion - in that respect she did do the morally upstanding thing. The rest of the show? Not so much.

Other men buying cribs for her baby. Her friends trying to hook her sister with a "gay-guy" to fix her image (oh, yeah, that was a great storyline!)

My problem is my teenage boys watch tv with us on Monday night for the comedy - is this the message I want to send my impressionable, hormone driven 16 and 18 yr old boys? Most nights we try to switch over to another channel for that 30 minutes - but if I leave the room to do something else and forget, my kids end up watching something I don't think belongs on prime-time. Unprotected sex, unwanted baby and living with one man while dating another is not exactly the humorous message I want to send to my kids in prime-time.

Okay, let me have it. It's fiction. It's a sitcom. Lighten up Frances... yeah I know. Sometimes I just can't help who I am and how I was raised.

And now back to your regularly scheduled programs...

 P.S. If I do watch, it's for Grant Show!