The (in)Glorious Results of a (mis)Spent Life

Spending the night with Robin...

2009-11-28T21:30:00.001-04:00

...Robin Hood, that is! Since I was a kid, I've always been fascinated by the tale of the dashing and fearless Robin Hood and his merry men. I've got every single movie made on Robin Hood, from the old 1922 version with Douglas Fairbank and The Adventures of Robin Hood with Errol Flynn (sexy!) to Kevin Costner's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. *sighs* Gosh, I even have Disney's cartoon version and Mel Brook's Men in Tights. What can I say, Mr. Brooks cracks me up!

And yes, every Saturday at 9:00 pm I faithfully lay down on my daybed and turn on the TV to watch Robin Hood on the BBC. I love this series! It's one of my guilty pleasures. Heh! And let's face it, that British accent just makes me go "aaaahh...".

Anyway, tonight at 10:00 pm, SyFy Channel has a new "original" Robin Hood movie out, Beyong Sherwood Forest. Hunky actor Robin Dunne (Sanctuary) will play Robin Hood. Yummy! According to the promo, it's the tale of Robin Hood with a twist like only SyFy can do it. This time "The Sheriff of Nottingham has a supernatural secret weapon, and Robin Hood's on the run."

After watching the promo, I'm totally intrigued. And a handsome Robin Hood is an added bonus. Heh! So I've got my Coca-Cola and my popcorn ready for my date with Sherwood Forest thief.

Aches over aches

2009-11-27T23:30:00.002-04:00

If yesterday I thought my arms and back ached, well, it's nothing compared to how much the ache right now. After spending 4 hours this morning pruning my ixora hedges, I can hardly lift my arms. My forearms hurt like a bitch. The worst part was that I didn't get to finish pruning the ixoras. *sighs* They had grown so totally out of control that they were about as tall the house, and most of them were covering half of the walkway. So as you all can imagine, it took me 4 hours to reduce half of them to the level of the fence.

Okay, yeah, it's all my fault not keeping an eye on them and pruning them more often. I know, I know, I know. Mea culpa.

New Moon! New Moon!

2009-11-13T23:49:00.001-04:00

Can you tell I'm excited about the new movie in the Twilght series? *wg*

Coca-Cola in your cake???

2009-11-12T23:03:00.002-04:00

Have you ever thought of using Coca-Cola as an ingredient in your next cake? How about Kellogg cornflakes or Quacker oatmeal? I was surfing the web for brownie recipes and tumble across these recipes using...er...unusual ingredients. Read below and see what I mean. *wg*

Frothy Coca-Cola and Banana Cake

Ingredients:

Cake

3 medium eggs
1/2 cup(s) light brown sugar
1/3 cup(s) Coca-Cola
1 1/4 cup(s) self-rising flour
1 cup(s) ground almonds
A few drops of vanilla extract
3 large bananas, well mashed
5 tablespoon(s) butter, melted, plus extra for greasing

Meringue

4 medium egg whites
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon(s) cream of tartar
1/3 cup(s) Coca-Cola
1 cup(s) light brown sugar
2 tablespoon(s) light brown sugar, combined with above sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease the cake pan or line it with parchment paper.

2. To make the cake, beat the eggs, sugar, and Coca-Cola in a mixer set to high speed for 5 minutes. You want the mixture to be completely frothed up.

3. Gently fold in the flour, almonds, and vanilla extract with a spatula. Then fold in the mashed banana, followed by the cooled melted butter. Transfer the mixture into the prepared cake pan.

4. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Remove from the pan and leave to cool on a wire rack.

5. To make the meringue, beat the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar in the mixer, again at high speed, until whisked up into soft peaks. Leave the meringue in the mixer while you melt the sugar. To do this, add the Coca-Cola to the sugar in a small saucepan, then heat gently until the liquid reaches 240°F (or what is known as "soft ball stage"), stirring continuously. Do not perform any other kitchen activities while you are doing this — it needs your undivided attention.

6. Now turn the mixer back on, but this time on a slow setting. Slowly pour most of the melted sugar into the whisked egg whites.

7. Now put the lid on the mixture and turn it up to full speed. After you have whisked the meringue for a minute or two, it should have the consistency of spreadable polystyrene (if such a thing existed!). Spread the meringue evenly over the cooled cake, pulling it into artful peaks.

8. This cake is best eaten within a few hours of making it, but will keep for 24 hours in the fridge.

Cornflake Macaroons

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup(s) desiccated coconut, plus a little extra to roll the balls in
3/4 cup(s) Kellogg's cornflakes
2 extra-large egg whites
3/4 cup(s) superfine sugar
1 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
Pinch of sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl with your fingers, crushing the cornflakes as you go.

3. Wash your hands, then with your fingers still damp, firmly shape the mixture into golf ball-sized spheres. Roll each ball in a little shredded coconut.

4. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. These light delights will store in an airtight container for a few days but they are best eaten on the same day.

Fish Sticks Coated with Oats and Cornflakes with Hellmann's Tartar

Tartar Sauce

2 tablespoon(s) Hellmann's mayonnaise
1 tablespoon(s) chopped dill
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon(s) Colman's dry mustard
1 teaspoon(s) capers, chopped
1 medium gherkin, finely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper

Fish Sticks

7 ounce(s) cod fillet, cut into strips
Small pile of flour
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup(s) Quaker oats
1/2 cup(s) Kellogg's cornflakes, crunched up in your hand
Oil, for deep frying

Directions:

1. First, make the sauce: Simply place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

2. To make the fish sticks, lightly coat the cod strips in the flour. Make sure that when you do this the fillets are not too wet. Pat them dry with a paper towel first if necessary.

3. Combine the oats and crunched-up cornflakes in a shallow bowl. Dip a strip of fish in the egg so that it is coated, then dip it into the oat and cornflake mixture and roll it around until it is covered. Repeat with the rest of the fish strips.

4. Deep-fry the fish fingers in moderately hot oil (350 degrees F) for 5–6 minutes, or until golden brown. Don't crowd the pan — cook in batches if necessary.

5. Serve the fish with the tartar sauce.

Skippy Peanut Butter and Nutella Cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup(s) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup(s) light brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup(s) self-rising flour
1 1/2 tablespoon(s) self-rising flour, combined with above flour
1/2 cup(s) Quaker oats
2 tablespoon(s) (heaping) Nutella
2 tablespoon(s) (heaping) Skippy smooth peanut butter
Butter, for greasing

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the baking sheet with butter.

2. Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat them together until pale. Add the egg gradually, beating with the spoon as you go.

3. Add the flour and the oats and mix well. Finally, add the Nutella and Skippy. Don't mix in the spreads completely; they need to be nice and swirly.

4. Use a tablespoon to place blobs of cookie mixture on the baking sheet, making sure that they are well spaced as the dough spreads during cooking. Bake for 10–12 minutes until slightly browned.

5. Let the cookies cool before removing them from the baking sheet, otherwise they will disintegrate. They can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week.

Friday World Wildlife Fund Raising

2009-10-30T23:33:00.001-04:00

This is the last Friday of the month, and here I'm bringing awareness to another wild animal that is in danger and needs your help. Since tomorrow is Halloween, I thought the vampire bat would a good choice. *wg* Help save them!

Adopt a Vampire Bat

Vampire Bat facts:

Vampire bats inhabit the tropics and subtropics ranging from Mexico to Argentina and Chile. They are parasites and feed exclusively on the blood of other species, including livestock and wild animals. Vampire bats have 22 teeth, but use only about half of the sharpest ones for feeding. They peel back a small sliver of skin on their prey and use their long tongues to lap up the blood. Developing more slowly than other species, the young will often nurse for as long as nine months and may only reach maximum weight after several years.

Another landmark in my life gone

2009-10-26T23:45:00.004-04:00

Man, I remember when the Internet was young back in the 90s. There were barely any websites out, Netscape was the first commercial browser, cyberspace felt like more like a small town, and Yahoo was the only search engine. Yeah, here I'm talking about the good old days. *winks* hehehe!

And for those of us who were starting to explore this new world and experiment with website creation didn't have any places where to host them. Until Geocities came out in 1985! It was one of the first places which host websites for free. Gosh, I remember that they had these neighborhoods named after cities like HotSprings, Athens, SoHo, and Tropics. See, the idea was to group websites by content, although after a while people chose to put their websites in whichever neighborhood was available. Hehehe! Anyway, each neighborhood had a number of "lots" where you could build your website. I parked mine in Athens 8623. Yep, I became a "homesteader" (that was what you were called back in late 1986), and my first website went up at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8623/. Hahaha!

My first attempt at a website was...well...pathetic. Heh! Oh, I did have the whole HTML down, but the images... UGH! Yeah, visually it sucked. But not for long! With the help of a couple of graphic artists, I began to experiment with PhotoShop and then posted my "creations" on my Geocities account. It was an exciting time, you know. It was all about experimenting...and learning. Heck, it was fun!

I found out that Geocities is closing its doors today. *sighs* It's kind of sad, you know? Although I've not been to by it in a long time, I feel like a part of me is gone.

Good bye, Geocities! It was really fun. And thank you... *getting teary*

A vamp movie for Halloween

2009-10-21T23:42:00.000-04:00

Here I thought I'd not have something fun to see this October and along comes The Vampire's Assitant.

So big strike?

2009-10-15T23:49:00.001-04:00

Today the unions and all those who work for the government were going on strike to protest about the 30,000 employees getting laid off starting next month. They claimed that they'd paralyzed the island. And of course as always people panic. (Thanks to the Well, the strike came and went. Here was business as usual. Other than for the public schools being closed (and therefore, the traffic being lighter than usual), it was just like any other day. Yep... Too much panic, not much of much.

Counting blessings

2009-10-14T23:50:00.001-04:00

Since I've been in my new job, I've been under a lot of stress (which has caused me severe back pains) and extremely overworked. But with the economy as it is and 30,000 people getting laid off starting next month, I should take a good look at what I've got and shouldn't complain too much. So after the meeting with the Big Kahuna this afternoon, I should be thankful that at least I still have a job *knocks on wood* and don't have to worry about how I'll pay my bills and mortgage. And I also should be thankful that I'm getting a raise.

This is too perfect

2009-10-10T22:33:00.000-04:00

This is exactly how my computer at work should have looked when I booted it this morning. Enuff said!

Another good thing ends

2009-10-07T23:22:00.003-04:00

Last night, as usual, I went for my one-hour walk at the local track where I live. As I came closer to the basketball building, the first thing I noticed was this huge shining light hanging on the front of it. (Trust me, it was hard to miss!) The whole place was illuminated like it was daylight. Even the houses across the street didn't escape its bright light. I'd bet those poor people would be totally pissed. As I kept musing about this and moving toward the other street to get to the track entrance, I noticed the back of the building was brightly lit too. Suddenly, like Han Solo, I had a bad feeling about it. (Which became my worst nightmare.) As I approached the side street that led to the track, I saw another of those big lights hung on the back of the building, lighting up the whole track. Shit. Gone was the soft glow of the previous two light fixtures that had been my soothing companions. To say that I was angry about it...weeeell...it was an understatement. But I tried - I really tried - to give it a chance and enjoy my time alone as I always did. You know, keep a positive attitude; make lemonade when life gives you lemons. But honestly, there's a limit to how much I can compromise.

First, it was almost impossible to walk at all. The damn light was hung too low so it blinded me. All I saw was colored spots dancing before me, so I had to walk with my head down looking at my sneakers to avoid the psychedelic trip. And like I said before, the peaceful atmosphere I always found under the gentle glow of the previous lights was gone. If anything I felt the stress cranking up a notch or two. Before I could look up at the sky and see the stars shining like diamonds on a black velvet blanket. On full-moon nights I would stop at the far end of the track, where it was darkest, and watch it rise over the trees. Totally breathtaking. I'd feel the stress melting away. However, tonight I could hardly see the sky at all. I think even the nightly critters were ticked off about the new light fixture too because it didn't barely heard them.

To make this short, I didn't do my one-hour walk. I tried, but I couldn't finish it. Thirty minutes into it (see that I tried to make it work?) and I couldn't take it the whole damn thing anymore so I quit and went home. What's the use of going to the track if I can't relax? A lot of bozos think I was doing it for my health, and that was the farthest thing in my mind. Sure, walking for an hour daily was good for my body and physical health and all that jazz. But that wasn't the reason I started my evening walks. I did it to relax, to get away from people and be alone - me and my thoughts, to enjoy the beauty of the evening time and the sounds of the critters. Will I ever be able to see another full moon shine in the dark sky surrounded by little stars? Will I ever enjoy another wonderful show of fireflies dancing among the plants? I'm not holding my breath. *sighs* So after almost a year and a half, my nightly walks have come to an end tonight.

OUCH!... my neck

2009-10-06T23:25:00.002-04:00

Today I spent over 3 hours in the "cave" filing records. Usually I don't mind do this kind of work. Although it's a bit tedious at times, I actually enjoyed it. I guess the fact that I'm alone in the vault - no other people around me nagging and complaining, no noises (especially of phones ringing) - makes it quite a pleasant time. I like to think of it as having some "me" time within my work time. However, today most of the records were to be filed on the upper shelves. Ugh! Even when I used the steps, I had to crane my neck and keep it tilted back. Right now my neck is sooo stiff, I can barely move it. Man, I'd give anything for a real good massage right now. But I'll have to settle for the heat pad and a rub with BioFreeze - oh and some Relafen pills - if I want to be able to sleep tonight.

On Ericka watch

2009-09-03T23:21:00.000-04:00

Just like everyone else in Puerto Rico, I've been obsessively following the weather reports on tropical storm Ericka. When you live in the Caribbean, you have to keep an eye on these storms. Especially after Hurricane Georges. Anyway, they have been claiming that the storm is weakening. But at 40 mph... well... we aren't not talking a gentle breeze to fly kites here. But I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Hey Ericka! Looking at the bright side

2009-09-03T20:13:00.006-04:00

Here's on my second day keeping tabs on tropical storm Ericka. Although things aren't looking pretty, it seems like it's moving slightly upwards. So the island isn't covered in "red," which means we're in less danger.

But who am I to complain? Today at 2:00 pm the official orders from the Big Boss said that work ceased at 4:00 pm and we were off till Tuesday. I'm having a 4-day weekend, baby! Yayy! Here's looking at the bright side.

New Moon Trailer!

2009-07-13T23:38:00.000-04:00

After seeing this, am I the only one stoke about the new movie in the Twilight saga?

Ready to go bi?

2009-07-09T23:37:00.000-04:00

For the past several months I've noticed that, although I can see things that are far away fine, I can't say the same with things up close. I have to take my glasses off to read the small letters in labels. Even to read. *sighs* I have to admit that I've not had my eyes check in ...er... quite a while (statement open to interpretation). Yeah, I know I should do so at least every two years, and I've been very naughty for neglecting to do so. My only excuse is that my medical plan doesn't cover this, and I can't afford to pay it all out of my pocket. Have you all see the prices of the frames alone? Even cheapest ones are way over $200! Anyway, I was telling a friend of mine about my "eye problem," and she told me that I might need bifocals. All I could do was stare at her. Did I hear her right? Me? Wear bifocals? Is she nuts?! I just turned 44. I don't need bifocals. Yet. *stomps feet and pouts*

The 4-4!

2009-07-02T23:50:00.003-04:00

Happy birthday to me!!!

Spamblog epidemy?

2008-08-01T13:31:00.003-04:00

I just dropped by the Romance Divas a few minutes ago, and many of the authors who have their blogs with Blogger are complaining that somehow their blogs have been reported as a spam blog and now there are blocked and locked. WTF?! Either there is a sicko around flagging blogs as spam or Blogger robots are screwed up. If it's the first, that's one fucked-up joke. If it's the latter, Blogger better solve this problem pronto. Many authors depend of their blogs for publicity, and it can be costing them $$$ in the long haul.

Walmart and I "green"

2008-07-26T23:27:00.003-04:00

Well, in this case, it's black. Heh! A couple of weeks ago I found out about Wal-Mart's reusable bags on their shopper, but when I went to buy one, they were out of stock (which it's a good thing since it shows people becoming more environmentally conscious). So it wasn't until today I was able to get my own. Isn't it a cutie? *wg* I wish it were slightly bigger and the bottom had a plastic support. Still, I love it. *g*

So today's big shout goes to Wal-Mart for doing their part in helping the environment.

Now, what are you waiting for? Get your own!

Awaiting Acheron with anticipation

2008-07-21T23:21:00.000-04:00

Did you all see the book trailer for Sherrily Kenyon's Acheron? *wg*

Movies on July

2008-07-09T23:42:00.000-04:00

Here are two that I'm looking forward to:

Sweet scents, oh my...

2008-07-06T21:18:00.002-04:00

Do you like candles? I admit that I'm not a "candle person." You know, the kind that has candles around, decorating their homes. A lot of people are. Not me. However, when it comes to scented candles, I have a kind of a "sweet" nose for them. Hahaha! But don't give me floral scented ones. Can't stand them! I'm quite peculiar when it comes to scented candles. This afternoon I dropped by Walgreens on my way to home and found they had most scented candles at very reduced prices. For $1.59 each, I bought...

Kathy Ireland Home Solution Scented Soy Candle Vanilla-Butter-Cream

Tiny Temptations Candle: Creamy Orange Frosted, and...

... Rich Creamy Chocolate

These soy candles have the most provocative aromas that ever graced my nose.

Happy 4th. of July!

2008-07-04T23:22:00.001-04:00

First of all, to all my dear American friends, happy 4th!

Glitter Graphics & Comments

Hope you all had a great day! Me? I had a very quiet day. In the early afternoon, I went by Borders to pick a copy of Christina Dodd's 2nd. book in the Darkness Chosen series, Touch of Darkness. Although I wasn't crazy about the first book, I still like the concept of the heroines having to find the icons and save Konstantino, the father of heroes, so I decided to give it a second chance. Then I dropped by Walgreens and bought some snappers and sparklers. So tonight I sat on the terrace, eating some of the cake I bought yesterday while the sparklers lit my backyard. (Yep, I set them all up in the gravel and lit them!) There was something soothing about sitting in the dark, eating cake, and watching the sparklers illuminate the night. Don't know why... Heh! Oh, and yes, I did crack some snappers as I was celebrating New Year's Eve. Hahaha!

Right now I was searching around the web and look what I found. A bridal dress for those who marry on this day.

And yes, it's a wedding dress! It said so in the website where I got this pic. Would you go as far as getting married on this gown? I wonder...

Yummy!

2008-07-02T23:36:00.000-04:00

It's my birthday. I want one of these. To hell with calories. It's all about the guilty pleasure...

Going green (part 3)

2008-06-09T20:59:00.004-04:00

Today I dropped by Walgreens to buy some vitamins and was (wonderfully) surprised to see they have the "green bags" on displayed. And all I can say is...it's about time! I didn't mind the recycle plastic bags because at least they were, well, recyclable. But still... it was such a waste of material. These green bags are a better way to protect the environment, and they're very eco-friendly because you can use re-use them. If they get dirty, you can wash them. BTW, they advertise this green bag is water repellent, preventing foul odors or bacteria. Nice, uh? And when they get old, you can recycle them because they're 100% recycle. How's that for environmentally friendly? *wg*

I'm so glad Walgreens is getting more conscious about the environment and starting to use the green bags. Besides, they're cheap, only 99 cents, which you pay only once anyway. Now I'm the proud owner of a green bag. Hehehe! I wonder if I can get Borders and Kmart to allow me to use it too. *g*

When it rains, it pours

2008-04-30T23:13:00.004-04:00

You know how the saying goes. Well, I meant it literally. For almost three months we'd not had a single drop. Today it started raining after mid-day and didn't stop until almost 8:00 pm. The parking lot was flooded. There was a good 3 inches of water in some areas. Luckily, I didn't park in my usual spot, where most of the water accumulates. But that was the only lucky part of my day. Honestly, I'd I wouldn't have minded all the rain except I had to work until 7:30 pm. I got all wet trying to Burger King for something to dine. Thank goodness I didn't have a workshop to give.

Back to the Grind

2008-01-08T23:21:00.001-04:00

My two-week Christmas vacation is really (and truly) over. *sighs* I guess yesterday I was in denial as I went about running errants and cleaning my house, and that little fact didn’t sink in my brain until this morning when the alarm of my table clock went off at the ungodly hour of 7:00 am. Shit, I hate waking up so early in the morning. I used to be okay with it before. Maybe it's an age thing - you know, getting older makes you lazy. And then there was the cold after all the rain we had yesterday. It was so deliciously cold when the alarm clock woke me up, I just wanted to remain in bed, huddled warm under my thick blanket. It took me about 10 minutes to work some strength to get off the bed.

As for work, I was back to double duties again. Half the day in one office, break for lunch, and then the rest of the day working in another office. Ugh! Not exactly an encouraging way to begin the day - or to start work again after spending some time unwinding. Knowing how this was the first day of work after 2 weeks free, I still expected to have a less hectic day. Yeah, I should have known better by now, right? *sighs* Man, I’m so tired I can hardly think coherently so excuse me if my writing doesn't make sense sometimes. And this is only the beginning. By next week this is going to go into pure madness. Oh... I can feel my stress level rising. My doctor isn't going to be a happy camper. I can hear him nagging me for letting stress mess up with my health. Again.

A Golden Reyes Day

2008-01-06T21:59:00.000-04:00

Today's The Three Wisemen Day, which means our Christmas season is officially over. My cousin was having a small gathering at her house, but I wasn't in the mood to around relatives

Sunday at Movies

2007-12-30T23:36:00.000-04:00

This morning I woke up with a hunker for donuts from Ricomini Bakery and movies. *wg* I know that sounds totally weird, but those who truly know me will know it's beyond normal - especially coming from me. Hah!

After spending some time just browsing what was new at Borders, I went to see "National Treasure 2." I loved the first one a lot even though I admit I'm not a Nicholas Cage fan. I've been catching it every time they show it on TV. This second one was really good. I loved the settings. Beautiful scenery! I also loved the new plot. However, I admit I missed the relationship between Ben and Riley. I even missed Riley's sarcastic comments that made me laughed so much in the first movie. He had . After coming out of the movie, I felt (really, really, really) tempted to sneak in and catch "The Golden Compass." The only thing that stopped me was that the youngest witchling

A Not-so-Perfect Christmas Day

2007-12-25T21:23:00.000-04:00

I got "Harry Potter 5" on DVD and some chocolate-covered cherries. I was hoping also to get “Pirates of the Caribbean 3” (I was planning a Johnny Depp/Jack Sparrow marathon tonight), but the copies that I ordered about 18 days ago from Amazon.com are still lost somewhere between Florida and Puerto Rico. I checked again this morning. Grrr! I was finally pissed off enough to send Amazon an email asking them WTF is wrong with that order.

To top an almost-lousy day, I was hoping to catch "National Treasure 2" at 2:50 pm in our local theater. I checked their website to make sure of the hour. But when I showed up, they had moved the first showing of the movie at 5:00 pm. Ah heck... No way I was catching such late show. And here I was all dressed up for nothing. Ah well... Instead I went to Baskin Robbins, bought some mint chocolate chip ice cream, and returned home to watch Harry Potter 5 on DVD.

Not Trying to Be Internet Fashionable

2007-12-08T21:24:00.000-04:00

I know youngsters love to be into the latest web hypes - blogs, MP3 download, iTunes download, deviant art, online photo albums, etc. But not me. Maybe in the past. Back 17 years ago when the Internet was new to all of us. I admit I tried anything new on the web - BBS, MUD, RPing, chatrooms, etc. But not now. With my(extremely) limited time to spend online? I so don't need another thing to make me waste more of my (little) spare time. (Like I don't have enough addictions on the web already, right? *LOL*)

Now the latest craze that's sweeping the web - MySpace. I've seen people - not just tweens and teens - get into that bandwagon. Seems like you ain't cool if you don't have a MySpace. I admit that I had a MySpace webpage just for to explore the concept out of curiosity, back when it wasn't cool to be in MySpace. *lol* But after a couple of months I deleted my account. That was about 2 years ago. Frankly, I didn't give a damn about it. However, my witchlings, both who have their own MySpace webpages and think it's the cooles thing ever, had been bugging me to open another account. Me? I didn't .

But today I took the youngest witchling to my office. Yeah, it's Saturday but I needed to do a , and youngest witchling tagged along with me. While she was checking her MySpace account, she kept asking me questions about how to do this or that, and of course I'd answer. Amazed that I knew so much about it, she asked me why I didn't open an account. I told her I'd not waste my time with it.

Another Date Slips By

2007-12-04T21:53:00.001-04:00

Geez... I've been so busy lately that Pixie's second passing anniversary yesterday slipped by, and I didn't notice. *sighs* There has something to be said for people like me that work so hard that let forget to important dates.

No NaNo bothers me...er... I think...

2007-11-02T22:13:00.003-04:00

Last night after blogging about NaNo I was thinking about the whole challenge and the times when I participated in it. Gosh, I even started this blog when I won my first NaNo challenge. Now I realized this will be my 2nd. year that I won't be participating in it. I couldn't stop thinking about it while I was at work today. For some reason the fact that I'm not participating in it bothered me. I can't say that I know why it did. But it did anyway. I (really, really, really) hate when that happens. *gr*

NaNo sneaked on me…

2007-11-01T22:19:00.003-04:00

Yep. That's right. The NaNo Challenge starts today. Can you believe it's already NaNo? I didn’t even realize it was that time of the year where the writing madness takes over the life of most writers/authors until I opened this email from a friend asking me to be her NaNo Challenge partner. I was like, "Uh?" Yeah, that totally clueless. *lol* I swear I had to double check my calendar to make sure it was truly NaNo time.

How did it sneak on me like that? I was usually pretty much aware of (and sometimes affected by) the building 50K-word writing fever in the past. Hmm... I guess the whole insanity didn’t hit me this time around since I’ve been so out of touch with most of writing/author-oriented forums and groups for the past months. Not that I've been avoiding them on purpose, mind you. Because I haven't. It's just that my very hectic schedule has kept me too busy, so I no longer spend endless hours sitting before my computer logging into every forum and newsgroup as I used to. Bleh...

Anyway, as for becoming my friend's NaNo Challenge partner, that's so not happening this year. Yeah, I know I'm still on time to hop into the looney wagon, but I've got enough stress and shit in my job already to crank it up by adding the NaNo to my life. So happy stress-free month for me! Weeee!

What's wrong with me?

2007-08-06T03:01:00.001-04:00

Lately I've been rather confused due to all the shit thrown my way for the past ... oh... I don't know... year and a half? So I decided to do some reading - card reading that is - to find out if it's just me or what, and this is what I got.

You are running from something. Unless you examine the way you think, your running will accomplish nothing except an immediate escape from what is troubling you. Until you learn to face it, it will come up again in some other guise.

You are at a crossroads. The correct choice is unclear--at least in terms of logic because there are too many unknowns. The Wands are not about logic; they are about inspiration and courage. Follow your gut and move ahead bravely.

You not only have gifts at your disposal, you are being offered another at this moment. You are focusing on an idealized concept that does not exist at the expense of current happiness.

Did Jeckyll hook you?

2007-08-05T09:13:00.000-04:00

I know I am! Last night out of curiosity I saw the 2-hour season premier episode of "Jeckyll" on BBC America and...wow! It was awesome! I didn't think I'd like it, but it was different from any other paranormal show I've seen out there.

If you're not familiar with it, check out the premise of the show:

Jekyll, described by writer Steven Moffat (Coupling, Doctor Who), as "somewhere between a modern horror story and The Odd Couple," is set in the present day and stars James Nesbitt in the title role. Dr. Jekyll is a contemporary man with an ancient curse of Mr. Hyde. But he's done a deal with his own devil - a body share - and keeps his dark side in check with the very latest surveillance hardware. Just barely keeping one step ahead of his alter-ego, Jekyll has managed to keep his wife and two kids a secret from the vicious Hyde. But what neither of them knows is that an organization with limitless wealth and power is monitoring their every move.

Creator Steven Moffat explains how he updated the classic tale: "There's potential to go in so many different directions with the tale - it's such a rich and strong idea - so here we go again! Another Jekyll and Hyde! The doctor and his dark side are back!

"What's new this time? Everything! Literally, actually new. For the first time the setting is modern day - no fog, no cobblestones, we're in London 2007. Dr. Tom Jackman is a new man with an old problem. If this story speaks to everyone with a dark side (everyone), why set it back then? Why not make it here and now? Why not make it a modern man in modern London? Why not have a helicopter in episode four?

"The story of Jekyll and Hyde was a shocking idea when it came out in 1886, and it wasn't a period piece. It was set in the modern day and was shocking in that this respectable man had this terrible dark side. Instead of a tale of naughty Victorian hypocrisy in London of long ago, why not make it about all the horrors slinking around the dark side of your mind right now?"

Since "HEX" last episode aired two Saturdays ago, I wasn't planning to become addicted to another TV show. Well, I was wrong. *lol*

DELL still sucks!

2007-08-04T22:05:00.000-04:00

I know I shouldn't have expected things to be different the second time around. *sighs* You see, tonight I called DELL technical support again hoping that this time around I'd find someone who would understand the need to send a technician to repair the computer. Well, to make a long story short, I encountered the same baffling bullshit that I did this morning. I'm still so angry my hands are shaking as I try to type this. I swear I'll never buy another computer from DELL. However, I still have to deal with the one that has to be repaired. So I sent them an email explaining everything. What good will it do? Not much, but it beats talking to a bozo online. Hopefully I'll get my point across and they'll send someone.

BTW, I received a letter from DELL to renew the warranty. What a joke! Do they think I'll spend money on that (which is quite expensive, you know!) so I have to end up doing their job? They can kiss my ass!

DELL support SUCKS!

2007-08-04T10:44:00.000-04:00

I'm sorely disappointed with DELL support at this very moment (as if the title of this post didn't give that away). I don't know what the hell is going on, but instead of improving their services, they have fucked them up. Before I used to call them and simply explain them what was wrong with the computer, and they would send a technician to my house to repair it. However, today when I called them to let them know that I couldn't turn CPU on, that it's totally dead, they insisted that I opened the computer to run some diagnoses. Excuse me?! Open the CPU?! No way in hell!!! Last time I did that to my goddaughter's computer before the warranty was over, the technician that came to repair it refused to honor the warranty because I had opened it. And I did it because the technician on the phone had told me to do it only! After a long argument, the technician accepted to repair it. So now the bozo who took my call expects me to open the computer? Yeah... riiiight. Even after I explained to him the problem I had in the past, he refused to file my complain and send a technician. So I'm done with DELL computers. I was thinking of buying a laptop from them this December. Well, I don't see that happening now. I'm through with DELL computers. It's sad in a way, since their computers are good and cheap. But their support just fucking sucks!

Another foray into my deviantions

2007-08-01T08:49:00.000-04:00

Paranormal erotic romance author Cassandra Curtis asked me to work on the cover for her latest freebie. She's so easy to work with, and I'm so insynch with what she wants to see in a book cover, that I accepted the new challenge. Check it out:

There's something about that background that makes me want to be at the beach right now. Hehehe!

My newest deviation!

2007-07-30T21:42:00.000-04:00

Check out my latest deviation. *LOL* Cool, uh? Then you won't believe me when I say what a pain in the ass this cover was. In my head I saw the arrangement of the boat and the pirate's face was completely different. But no matter how much I tried to make it work as I envisioned it, it wouldn't come out right for the size of the cover. I worked on this for about 3 (frustrating) weeks. I was about to give up on it, really. I couldn't make it work and I was pissed off as hell. Then I accidentally moved the

My sexy deviation

2007-07-19T22:01:00.000-04:00

A picture says more than a thousand words, right? *wg*

Tah dah... my lastest deviation

2007-02-17T21:55:00.001-04:00

Happy Valentines!

2007-02-14T11:35:00.000-04:00

Hope you all have a wonderfully romantic day! Well, those of you who have companions (husbands, boyfriends, lovers, significant others, etc.) anyway... Which makes me think what those of you who are single do on this day to celebrate it.

I, for one, have never celebrated with a companion. It's funny, but looking back, I always managed to break up with my boyfriends before this day came. I never thought of it, but now that I do, I see a pattern. Hm... I don't know why I did it. Maybe deep inside, in the dark recesses of my mind, I never wanted to do the whole Valentine couple thingy. Or maybe I was too stingy and didn't want to buy anything for my boyfriends. *LOL*

Of course, even without being a couple relationship, I still celebrated Valentine's Day. When I was younger, I used to buy these black roses (which are rather expensive), and decorate my room with them. I'd buy red candles for decoration too. Then on Valentine's night, I'd take a long hot bubble bath, and lock myself in my room to read a good romance novel. Nowadays I don't do the roses and candle bit - especially since I hate roses. But I still curl up in my bed with a good paranormal romance novel and read it.

My new deviations

2007-02-11T12:41:00.000-04:00

My first attempt at book cover creation was such a hit that Cora Zane and Cassandra Curtis asked me to work on their new book covers for their St. Valentine's freebies. Heh! So here are my new "deviations":

Not bad, uh? I could get used to doing this for a living. Okay, maybe not. *lol*

Good riddance to 2007

2007-01-31T23:34:00.000-04:00

2007 sucked! I mean, it really, really, really sucked. It sucked so bad I wish I could have skipped it. Honestly, it was filled with nothing but one bad event after another. Goddess knows I'm not sorry to see this year go. Yep, this is one year I won't miss. Good bye and good riddance! Now get the hell out of here, 2007!

Feeling the blues

2006-12-03T21:30:00.000-04:00

As I lay in my bed, book in hand, I felt like something was missing. Funny how my eyes strayed to the calendar, and it was then I noticed the date. It marks the one year anniversary of Pixie's. *sighs* Sometimes his presence - or lack of it - might have gone unnoticed. It had been such a long, stressful year. Most of the time I've been too busy to pay attention that he's no longer with me. Maybe I overworked myself on purpose. But it's moments like this when I really missed the little one.

It's Nov. 1

2006-11-01T08:35:00.000-04:00

The first day of the NaNo Challenge. So here's a big "good luck" salute to all those who have made the commitment to this writing madness. I won't be joining them though this year. Not that I have anything else to do. You see, I admit that I entertained the idea of using the energy buzzing around to write 5 short stories of 10K each. That was if I could come up with 5 different ideas before the challenge began. But since I couldn't come up with any plot-line that remotely interested me, I decided to kick back and relax instead. Yeah, I know the challenge is just starting and I could still participate or at least do some writing. But nah... don't feel like it. Apathic, yeah.

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-31T21:52:00.000-04:00

First of all, Happy Halloween - or Blessed Samhain - to you all! I just love this time of the year. Definitely one of my favorites. Why? Well, what's not to like? I enjoy decorating my house for Samhain. Lights everywhere. Morris the Cat

It's almost that time of the month...

2006-10-26T10:08:00.000-04:00

...and I'm not referring to the womanly days. I'm talking about the NaNo Challenge. I can't believe November is already here. And people everywhere are buzzing about NaNo again. Has it been already a year since I last participated in this? Wow... *blinks blinks* I've been so busy with other things that I'd not thought about NaNo. Hmm... Honestly, I don't know if I'm going to join the madness this year. Everybody is being so enthusiastic about it that sometimes I feel almost swept away with their energy. I said "almost." I don't want to join just because everybody else is doing it. Last year I got caught up in the NaNo fever, and personally, it became a struggle to finish it. Sorry, but I'm not one of those who gets all fired up about something just to quit when they tough gets going. If I join, I'll have to finish it. So I'm considering it...

I'm a deviant!

2006-10-24T10:20:00.000-04:00

Not that kind of deviant... (For those of you who are thinking, "I already knew you were a little sickie. Did you finally decide to come out of the deviant closet?") I'm talking about in an artistic way. And no, it has nothing to do with photographic naked men. Oh you guys get your mind of the gutter!

Have you heard of Deviant Art? It's an online community for artistic people who want to share their artwork. If you've not visited the website, you should. You'll be amazed at the number of talented young people there. At the insistance of one of my tutors and his girlfriend, I opened an account there back in 2005. Of course, I didn't know why I bothered doing it since I can draw even if it's to save my life. But there it was, that account dormant. Sure, I visited Deviant Art quite often and checked out the wonderful artwork posted there. But that was that.

Well, recently Cassandra Curtis and Cora Zane approached me to work on the covers for their ebooks. You see, they'd planned to give away so free ebooks this month, and they wanted to have nice covers. And...guess what? I accepted. I know what you thinking, "WTF? Silma, you don't know shit about book cover creation or graphic arts." Okay, I admit you're right. But don't you see? It was a CHALLENGE! The possibilities of failing were there, and I found exhilirating. (Now that makes me a deviant, alright! *rofl*) Besides, I critized enough ebook covers, so it was about time I put my money were my mouth is. Or is it try it and maybe fall flat in my ass? Oh... whatever! The thing is that the creative bug had bit me. And bit me hard!

So on I went on to work and ... tah dah...!!! I did it! Check it out!

Cassandra's cover was the easiest. Now Cora's was a bit harder. That motorcycle was a little to find and then to make it match with the rest of the colors/shadows. Now the last one... oy!... I did like 5 different versions before I settled for one. I know these might not be the best book covers you've ever seen, but

Finally I put my deviant art account to use and uploaded them. Hehehe! I'm at:

http://sipagan.deviantart.com/

I had so much fun with it, that I'm planning to keep doing this. Just until my creativity runs out. Hahaha!

Peeping in...

2006-10-11T09:07:00.000-04:00

Yeah, I know I promise to start blogging regularly again but it's been exactly a month today since I last blogged. Sorry about that. Life has a way to butt in. Not much to say really. Although things at work are going a bit smoother, there's still a slight tension underneath. That level of uncertainty that of what's going to happen with our jobs. The only blessing we've had is that there have been more problems with the online labs than last semester. Everyone is pulling their hair, angry at the situation. Every day I get so many complains, and I'm the only one capable of solving them. So you can imagine how busy I've been. Which in a way it's good thing. Well, good for me. It makes my big bosses see that my job is needed. No complains in that department.

As for writing, I've not touch my computer to write - except for a few emails. (Note: To those who I still owe emails, I'll try to get back to you as soon as I can.) Have I been uninspired? Yes. Up to a certain point. Okay, ideas are sort of hazy in my head. Which is good, right? But I no longer feel motivate it to sit before the computer and write them.

Having gone a-MIA

2006-09-11T21:33:00.000-04:00

Hi... *waves shyly* Remember me? It's been almost 2 months since I last posted here. I'll bet some of you having been wondering what I've been up to. (I even heard M.E. shouting all the way from Inglaterra!) Don't you worry, the chupacabras didn't kidnap me and took me to his planet. (Didn't you know the chupacabras is an alien from the Cabras planet?)

Well, you see, I thought about taking a couple of weeks off the internet to see if I could get back into the funk of writing. I've not been very creative for a long time because I've not been too involved in very creative circles. The energy hasn't been there anymore - not after the critique group I'm still in stopped critiquing - so back then I figured maybe I could get my funk back if I immersed myself back into the wereanimal story.

So, off I went to the beach, where I met this gorgeous man with silky long brown hair and eyes the color of the deepest ocean. His skin had this rich soft chocolately tone that begged to be licked and tasted it. Tall with a body of a man used to workout and keep himself in shape. Broad shoulders, rippled muscular chest, narrow hips, and powerful legs. Oh... and nice, tight ass that won't quit. Like a guaraguao flying over its prey, he swept me off my feet and into his embrace; and night after night, under the pale rays of the tropical moon, we soared higher and higher.

Okay, now that you're all "wow-ing" and "uuuh-ing" and minds are right in the gutter, let me tell you the truth. Okay, it's true I wanted to take a few days off to finish writing my wereanimal story. I didn't have the creative energy to do it, but I figured I could push myself at least to finish it - even if the results (the story) didn't live up to my expectations. However, as I dragged myself to write the story, a few blows turned my world upside down. August came and with all bad news. My job suddenly was in shaky grounds. The probabilities of losing grew by leaps and bounds. Add to that the stress of being moved to do other jobs that weren't related to what I was hired for. Every day the uncertainty grew. There were too many rumors milling around. I know rumors are just rumors. But most rumors are based on the truth. The problem was trying discerning fact from fiction. Although the management assured us we wouldn't lose our jobs, my experience was that their words are usually empty.

Add to that doctor visits, and, well... the level of stress was too much for me. Every day I'd come home from work late at night, and I'd sit before the computer trying to figure out what to post about. But in the end I'd realize I didn't have anything to say. At all. My brain was blank. Words wouldn't flow. I didn't even have the energies to whine and bitch. I was going through the motions, but I felt empty inside. It was like being trapped in the eye of the hurricane. That false sense of tranquility around you. But turmoil rolls outside that deceptive peace.

I didn't feel centered for a long time. I tried to find my center. To feel grounded again. Although there are times in which I'm almost myself, I still don't feel totally centered and grounded. I guess there's too much coming at me still. But I'm alive. That's good.

As for my job, things are still hanging there. I've not lost it. And I've not been moved to another position either. But this won't last long. Eventually something is going to happen. So the future is still uncertain although there's a truce. So I guess I better start trying to figure out a few things in my life - especially when it comes to my job. Baby steps, Silma... baby steps.

Weeepa Boricua!

2006-07-23T23:50:00.000-04:00

"Yo soy boricua...
Pa' que tu lo sepas."

That's the chorus of a reggaton song. And in this case it applies as tonight another Puerto Rican, Zuleyka Rivera Mendoza, was crowned Miss Universe. Puerto Rico is but a small island in the Caribbean Sea. Once a colony of Spain, now of the USA. It's been hard for my people to keep an identity. And when things like this happens, it makes us more aware of our heritage and proud that it's recognized in some way. Now Zuleyka Rivera joins a very exclusive group of women that have represented my little island:

2001 - Denise Quinones
1993 - Dayanara Torres
1985 - Deborah Carthy-Deu
1970 - Marisol Malaret

Oh, I know as a feminist I should feel offended by this type of show that only serves to diminish women. And I promise to get totally offended as soon as I finish celebrating the victory of Puerto Rico. *does the Snoopy dance*

Music for my hero

2006-07-21T22:18:00.000-04:00

I Need A Hero
by Bonnie Tyler

Where have all good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where’s the street-wise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?

Isn’t there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I toss and turn and dream of what I need

I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the end of the night
He’s gotta be strong
And he’s gotta be fast
And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the morning light
He’s gotta be sure
And it’s gotta be soon
And he’s gotta be larger than life

Somewhere after midnight
In my wildest fantasy
Somewhere just beyond my reach
There’s someone reaching back for me

Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
It’s gonna take a superman to sweep me off my feet

I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the end of the night
He’s gotta be strong
And he’s gotta be fast
And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the morning light
He’s gotta be sure
And it’s gotta be soon
And he’s gotta be larger than life

Up Where the mountains meet the heavens above
Out where the lightning splits the sea
I would swear that there’s someone somewhere
Watching me
Through the wind and the chill and the rain
And the storm and the flood
I can feel his approach
Like a fire in my blood

I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the end of the night
He’s gotta be strong
And he’s gotta be fast
And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I’m holding out for a hero ‘til the morning light
He’s gotta be sure
And it’s gotta be soon
And he’s gotta be larger than life...

Argh mate!

2006-07-17T21:01:00.000-04:00

My goddaughter and I had made plans to go to see Pirates of the Caribbean 2 since it's released in the States (a week earlier than in Puerto Rico). I'd taken her to see the first one when it came out, and we both have loved it very much - for different reasons. *wg* However, when it came down to see this second part, there was always something preventing us from going. But I was determined to see it. I was getting itchy to see it the more I read blogs and posts on the movie. Geez, it was like everyone had seen it but me. I felt so left out!

So since today is a holiday and I didn't have to go to work, we planned to go to the early matinee. She'd already phoned her best friend to come along with us. I didn't mind - but of course, I didn't know what I was getting into. The matinee started at 2:20. But the rain decided to start earlier. By the time I went to pick up my goddaughter, it was pouring hard, preventing us from leaving her house. I asked her she minded going to the next show at 5:30, and she said no. She phoned her best friend again, and we agreed to go at 5:30 instead. By then the rain had stopped. Whoopee!

We arrived to the theater 10 minutes to 5:30, so there I was with two 14-yr-old girls in tow. A totally new experience for me. I've never had so many teens tagging along with me before. All that giggling and chatting...

The movie started right on time, but that didn't stop the giggling and chatting. Especially when Orlando Bloom appeared in a scene. I could hear my goddaughter and her best friend sighing and chatting animately every time the dark lock pirate appeared on the silver screen. *lol* (Although looking at that poster, let's face it, he looks pretty dashing! I think it's the long hair that does it for me. *lol*) Gosh, I hope I wasn't as bad as they were when I was their age.

Oh, okay. Maybe I'm still as bad. *wg* I admit I couldn't take my eyes of Johnny Depp. Damn! The man looks so fine as a pirate. I could picture him dressed like that in my fantasies. But...er... *coughs* I disgress.

The movie was good. It was still funny like the first one but with a darker edge to it. All the characters seemed to be growing and changing directions, which makes me wonder what will happen in the 3rd. installment of the movie - especially between Elizabeth and Will. (Sorry, love Jack Sparrow but I'm still rooting that they stay together.) Regardless of some of the comments I've seen around, this movie answered some questions - at least to me. For instance, I always wondered where Jack Sparrow had gotten the "P" on his arm. All in all, I liked the movie.

After the movie, I took the teens to Burger King for something to eat. Basically the convo involved talks about how cute Orlando Bloom looked in the movie followed by giggling. *rolls eyes* Love both kids, but they zapped my energies. After returning them their respective homes, I got to mine and felt exhausted. Not even a warm shower revived me.

Betrayal and the romance writer

2006-07-13T22:48:00.000-04:00

"I feel so betrayed!"

This was the first message that popped on my screen when I logged into my Yahoo messenger a couple of hours ago. I rarely use the program, but tonight I felt compelled to do it. Anyway, I was like "Excuse me? What is she talking about?" Not even a hello? How rude! But I ignored it and decided to reply. So this is how the convo went more or less.

Me: "What happened?"

She: "I thought they were my friends but they are a bunch backstabbing bitches. You can't trust anyone anymore."

Okay. Backstabbing. I can related to that. I've been backstabbed enough in my lifetime that my back must be full of knives with no more space for another by now. But I still couldn't understand where she was coming from with this.

Me: "Why are you saying that?"

She: "Remember, I was planning to work with in a writing project with these other writers?"

Me: "Yeah." I vaguely remember something about she and some other writer collaborating on a story and they were setting up some website for it. Or something like that.

She: "They started hanging out with these other two writers who totally hate me. Today I got an email from both of them saying they're committed to this other project with those idiots so they were dropping out of our project. I suspected something was wrong when they didn't answer my last two emails."

Doesn't this remind you of high school and clicks?

Me: "Did they tell you why they drop your project? I mean other than they're committed to another project."

She: "No. But that's bullshit. It's all that dark-haired whore's (I'm sustituting name here) fault. First, she insinuated herself into our group, sucking up to the others, telling them how wonderful they were and how much she loved their books. Then when she got published, the bitch showed her claws. Sucking up to the publishers and pretending to be everyone's good friend. I'm telling you, you can't trust people in this business. They call themselves your friends when all they want to do is use you."

Does that mean I can't consider her my friend either then because she might be using me?!

Well, I listened to her ranting for an hour or so, nodding and yeahing in all the right places, then I told her I had to do some writing and logged off. But my file remained opened while I just stared at it, this woman's words running around my head.

Oh, I'm not saying that everything is all peachy in the romance writing world. They are those who would snub you for whatever reason they deem necessary, which brings the idea of "clicks" in my mind. Oh yes, there are "clicks" among romance writers. Then there are the "suck-ups." They suckup to you if you're a published writer, and once they become published, they suckup to the publishers. (You know, the ones who just "ooh" and "aaah" at the most stupid things the publishers do just to gain the favors.) They also turn into the publisher spies, you know. Next are the "climbers", who don't care whose career they fuck up or who they step on their way to achieve their goals. Finally, there are the "published sharks" who hang around groups just waiting to steal ideas and plot premises (one of the reasons why I don't post anymore on workshops' assignments) because their well of ideas has run dry a long time ago and their writing careers are sagging. And don't get me started on the "snarkers."

So basically I don't know really what happened between this writer and the other two, but I'm not counting off what this woman said to me. Betrayal? Yes, it does exist. I've not faced that demon yet, and I hope I don't have to, but I'm sure it must lurking around, somewhere, waiting to jump on me.

However, romance writing is like any other job. You'll find "snubbers," "suckups," "climbers," "snarkers," and "sharks" in every single job - from waitresses in a small cafe to college professors in a prestigious university. Unless you're your own boss and own a 2 to 3-person business (and those who work for you are your relatives). This isn't a perfect world, people. Get over it!

But you can't put all romance writers into "snubbers," "suckups," "climbers," and "sharks" categories. There are some damn fine people out there. Honest people who want to pursue a career in romance writing. And if you're lucky enough, you'll find them along your path. Give them a chance to walk travel this hard road that is the romance writing. You'll blossom and so will your career.

Which Pirate of the Caribbean character are you?

2006-07-13T07:01:00.000-04:00

Which Pirates of the Caribbean character are you?

Car updates

2006-07-13T06:55:00.000-04:00

Yesterday my car was at the mechanic. Yes, AGAIN. The mechanic changed the pressure hose, but it still spilled the power steering oil. So at 11:30 am my mother called to tell me that she was going back to the store where we bought the pump (back almost a month ago) with my cousin. I sighed since I'd hoped that changing the hose would do the trick, so I told her to do whatever was necessary. But I swear I was seeing more $$$ slipping off my grasp. By the time I was leaving home to go back to work, she and my cousin had arrived with the new pump. When I came home, the car was parked inside the garage. I called mom, and she said so far I'd not spilled any more power steering oil and that I owe the mechanic $89. Agh! Gosh, that new pump better work 'coz I've spent almost $400 already in repairs.

Woohoot!

2006-07-11T23:21:00.000-04:00

I just got an email from Noelle, one of my CPs. A couple of days ago she'd finally mustered enough courage to send out two romance short stories to Freya's Bower for their Bites series. Today she received the contract email. OMG! I'm so happy for her!!! Woohooo! *does the booty-liciuos dance of happiness*

Green monster

2006-07-11T00:01:00.000-04:00

No, it's not the Hulk. I'm talking about that green-eyed monster that lives inside each one of us, hidden quietly in the darkest part of ourselves, and when something triggers it, it roars to life, coming out sometimes as tall as the Green Giant. Know what I mean? ¡Ay caramba! Y dale with the Hulk. I'm talking about jealousy here people. Yes, yes... That's the green monter.

Why am I bringing up this topic? Well, for the past couple of weeks I've been reading blog entries and other posts dealing with that little monster called envy. Especially among romance writers. From little twinge of jealousy when hearing someone snagged an agent or a 3-book contract to full blow-out cases in which writers manage to say that a fellow writer's work sucks. Gosh, I even readcases of writers complaining that this or that other writer got a better cover or hotter-looking model on their book cover, or that this writer is getting more attention from their publisher than they do.

Of course, when you're struggling to make it as a writer and you dream of snagging Dreidre Knight as your agent and your goal is to get that 4-book contract with Avon Books, it's only natural to feel a pang of jealousy when you see a fellow writer landing a contract with the agent of your dreams or signing the sought-after book deal instead of you.

So as I read these posts, I started thinking (which isn't a good thing sometimes) about how I've personally felt when I log into Romance Divas and read my fellow writers posting about getting sign-up by this or that agent, selling their books to this or that publisher, and getting book deals right and left. Especially those who are newcomers and have been involved in this whole romance-writing thing for less time than me. I realized that I've felt happy for all of them, but never jealous. Not even a teensy-weensy twinge inside.

Which leads me to wonder what's wrong with me. (Okay, besides the fact that weird thing about having to have my hair on a pony-tail and wear bunny slippers to write. *rolls eyes*) How come I don't feel jealous about these things? Some say it's not unhealthy to feel a bit jealous of other writers' accomplishments since it's more like creative jealousy. Am I...unnatural then? Hm... Don't answer that one, please.

Oh, I'm not saying that I've never been jealous. When I go to the beach and see a woman with a great body wearing a bikini, I turn into a Hulk with envy. Or when I'm driving and see someone in a Hummer (H3) pass by my 1990 Nissan Sentra, damn, I'm totally jealous. (So my ideal would be to have the perfect body and drive the coolest car. *rofl*)

Seriously though, when it comes to writing, sure I wish I could slap a story in 1 - 2 weeks, pulling 10 - 15 pages daily, like some of my fellow writers do. However, I've never felt jealous. I might have felt inadequate as a writer at first, but then I came to terms with how I write. So I've been wondering if the green monster inside will be triggered sometime, or what will trigger it to surface.

What makes you jealous? What rises that green-eyed monster inside you when it comes to writing?

Weekend in review

2006-07-10T07:19:00.000-04:00

Well, the car is at it again. I came home Friday afternoon and the car was dripping the power steering oil - again!!! Saturday morning it was back to the mechanic. He's baffled with the situation and told me he'd never seen a case like mine. (Gosh, why that doesn't make me feel all fuzzy inside. *smirks*) So I took my car back. At least it didn't make the weird noise and I could turn the wheel. That afternoon the mechanic told me that he'd consulted the situation with other two mechanics and they agreed it might be the pressure hose (or whatever it's called in English), but he can't see my car until this Wednesday. That new...thingy... will cost me about $89 (plus taxes - shit, I forgot about that). Oh boy...

Then I got some sad news on my email, that although it wasn't surprising, it made me rethink a lot of things. I realize that in my career as a romance writer there are doors closing but others opening, and I have to learn to go with the flow and not fight it. There are things that must happen. Perhaps for the benefit of everyone involved. I just need to find my niche.

As for writing, I didn't type a word as I'd planned. I was suppossed to go over the moon phases with the calendar and make sure I'd not fucked up the timeline in my wereanimal story for DDD. But I didn't do that either. Instead I brainstormed a few ideas to tie that story, Zack's story, and Dimitri's story. Yeah, I know what you're all thinking. I've not finished one story, and I'm already thinking of the other two. *lol*

So you all wondering what I did this weekend, right? Well, I repaired my goddaughter's computer. Also I reformatted my computer (another hacker was trying to slip in - sucker!), downloaded a few new software and installed them. Speaking of downloads, I downloaded tons of songs from 70s rock bands. I had a hunker for some good ole Journey, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Ted Nugent, Fleetwood Mac, and Bee Gees (before the disco era). *lol*

So, how was your weekend?

Sunday Test

2006-07-09T00:03:00.000-04:00

Your Aura is Violet

Idealistic and thoughtful, you have the mind and ideas to change the world.
And you have the charisma of a great leader, even if you don't always use it!

The purpose of your life: saying truths that other people dare not say

Famous purples include: Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Susan B. Anthony

Careers for you to try: Political Activist, Inventor, Life Coach

What Color Is Your Aura?

Blame it on the moon

2006-07-07T11:05:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I did some little writing on the wereanimal story, although I must admit the progress wasn't enough to further it toward the end. I expanded the first scene between Marcus and Zack. Just added details. Something I'm not good at when I'm first drafting a story. For a while I toyed with the idea of making this one the first chapter, but then I realized that it'd set the tone of a fast-paced action-packed plot for the story from the very beginning giving the readers the wrong impression so I discarded the idea. Frustrated, I went over the first 4 chapters, looking for grammatical errors, before sending it to Laura and Noelle for a brief critique in the hope that they might detect something I haven't. As I read it, I quickly noticed the time line was off. Because many of the characters are wereanimals and the club opens only during weekends, I forgot to take into consideration the full moon. I mean, I did take it into account when I wrote the scenes because some of the hero's reactions are affected by the moon, but I forgot how many weekends would be between one full moon and the next (the moon cycle). Now I have to sit down with my story and a calendar to figure this out.

Have you ever had a problem missing a key element of story's timeline that makes it off?

When a story threatens to spill out

2006-07-06T08:39:00.000-04:00

As you all know I've been trying for the past two and a half weeks to finish my story for the DDD anthology (the deadline is Aug. 1). Notice that I said "trying." I started alright, adding about 1.5K words to the story during the first week, but then I hit a (huge) snag, and I've not been able to move past it.

You see, the problem is that the external conflict is taking over the internal conflict. Okay, well, that's not it exactly. Hm... It's more difficult to explain that I thought. Here's the deal, I'm trying to create a connection between the DDD story and another one, which I started writing even before DDD one. Besides having the same setting, which is also the common denominator in Viviene's and Cassandra's stories, I wanted Zack, the hero of my other wereanimal story, to appear in Marcus's story (which is for the DDD anthology). You know, have a couple of scenes together so the readers would recognized Zack when they read his story. So far, so good, right? Right.

So for the DDD story, I wrote a scene that allowed me to introduce Zack, and then a second one in which Marcus and Zack interact a bit more, showing the relation between these two. Fine. Now here's where the mess started. Zack's story is more action-packed whereas Marcus's story is more internal conflicted. But because of the scenes I already wrote, the external conflict in Zack's story is sort of spilling out into Marcus's story. I want Marcus and Helena's story to have more internal conflict than external conflict. I mean, the external conflict will be there in the form of her ex-husband, but I don't want this story to turn into one of those "action-packed ones," where the hero/heroine depend on something to happen to react. You know, the typical line in which the hero saves the heroine from perilious situations. No, no, no!!! This isn't what the DDD story is about. I want Marcus and Helena's story to be very emotional. I want to make the heroine struggle with her own emotions and believes (what's right and wrong), and therefore, raise and challenge society's moral values. (But it's all an emotional struggle for her. She will have to break with everything she grew up believing in and change.)

So, my question to all wise writing gurus out there is:

What do you do when the conflict/action of one story threatens to spill into the other? How do you keep the original plot intact without allowing the follow-up to mess it up?

Happy 4th!

2006-07-04T22:09:00.000-04:00

Hope you all enjoyed your day full of fireworks and out cookouts!

Me? I had a good day. I went out shopping in the morning. Nothing fancy there though. Just a few thing I needed from Walgreens. Then my goddaughter and I decided to catch Superman Returns's early show. I thought the movie was okay. It dragged at times, maybe because they wanted to try recap those missing 5 years between Clark Kent and Louise Lane and to create an emotional build-up by adding a new man in her life (played by James Marsden, the actor who played Cyclops on X-Men) and her son. It failed at times, making me wish Lex Luthor would show up and do something. Speaking of Lex Luthor, he wasn't given enough chance to shine as the bad guy. He was more like a filler at times. The end was good though. The special effects were awesome. And the actor was to die for. *g*

The day after my b-day

2006-07-03T20:46:00.000-04:00

Oh man, there's no worst hangover than the one you get from drinking too much wine. (There are four bottles of Vampire wine on a bag for recycling. Damn! S omany?!) But at least I didn't wake up with a strange male g-string on my head and there was no coffetti in my panties. *lol*

A great surprise though was to get a package from C.C. in the mail this morning. OMG! She is a little wiz creating these wonderful products out of herbs. This time she sent me a natural-soy, spice-scented candle. Took one whiff of it to spark my sleepy Muses back into writing. (Thank you, chica! Just what I needed! I added like 300 words to a chapter on my DDD story, and now I'm much happy with it.) There was also a piña colada shea butter lip care, which I quickly had to try on. Hmm... Delicious! It made me want to have a piña colada (but without rum). *g* She also included a sample of her apricot scrub with vitamin E, which I'll try to night as part of my nightly beauty ritual. But what really made me smile was the green tea soap with the face of the Green Man on it and the aveeno soap with a triskele (not to be confused with a triquetra) design on it. That was so thoughtful of her! *wg*

Now to the horoscope for this month according to Astrology for Writers, Editors and Filmmakers:

Cancer: Many, many gifted writers and editors and filmmakers (Larry David for one) are Cancers. Astrological researchers have found that the Moon, the ruler of Cancer, is prominent in the charts of the great writers of our time. This year, with Jupiter in Scorpio, the stars support your projects, lift your spirits, and line your wallet.

So my wallet is going to be "lined." Well, I sure didn't get "the big bonus check" the stars promised me last month. So let's see what happens this month.

Birthday time!

2006-07-02T12:33:00.000-04:00

YES! Today's my birthday. I'm turning 20 (with 21 extra years of experience.) *lol*

Some interesting things that happened a day like today:

1776 - The Continental Congress adopts a resolution severing ties with Great Britain, though a formal Declaration of Independence is not adopted until July 4. (Today's the real Independence Day, baby, yeah!)
1937 - Amelia Earhart, American aviator (disappeared) (b. 1897)
1962 - The first Wal-Mart store opens for business in Rogers, Arkansas.
1979 - The first U.S. coin to honor a woman, the Susan B. Anthony dollar, is introduced.

Know a little about little ole me through astrology:

1965 -
Chinese Astrology: Snake

Chinese Sign Element: Wood

Unpublished works when I'm dead

2006-07-01T00:16:00.000-04:00

What are you guys planning to do or are doing with work you don't want published, swiped or artfully interpreted after you buy the farm? - Paperback Writer

I just ran across this question posted by author Lynn Viehl on her blog, and it got me thinking (which it's a dangerous thing to do).

Okay, I'm not a well-known writer as she is, and I doubt I'll ever be. So who would want to publish my stuff once I'm dead? I doubt that my goddaughters will find all these CDs and diskettes with my stories and decide to publish them. *rolls eyes* I'm sure they might end up throwing them all away without looking at the content of the files. Or maybe they'll amuse themselves reading what good old Madrina Silma wrote when she was young. Then they'd laugh and cry and put them in the trash can. Of course, wouldn't it be a kicker if they published them and the stories became bestsellers? Famous after death. *lol* Gosh, I can see it now! Everyone saying how good I am. And they can't say a mean word because I'm dead. You don't speak bad of dead people (except evil politians).

On the other hand, let's imagine for a moment that I gain a measure of recognition among my peers and the romance community, but I kick the bucket and leave behind all these unpublished material. Would I try to destroy the stories so nobody can find them when the gorgeous Grim Reaper, with emerald-green eyes alight with inner fire, silky black hair, and a nice tight ass that won't quit, comes to pick me up for a long-term date? Nope. Would I mind if one of my goddaughter tries to pick up on where you left? I doubt that will ever happen as those two don't have the inclination to write. But if she can do a better job than I did, more power to her. (Girl, just make sure you get paid!) How about if if it's another writer? Then I'm coming back and haunt him/her. (I'll make one hell of a spook!)

Hard decision

2006-06-30T05:40:00.000-04:00

Two days ago I posted about whether renewing my RWA membership or not, openly expressing some of my fears and concerns. Thanks to all the people who read the post and commented on it. Although I couldn't answer each one of your comments (something that I apologize for), I did read them.

Some of you told me to follow my heart. Well, my heart wanted to renew it for one more year. My mind agreed up to a point because it was thinking about the RWR magazine and its wonderful articles. However, after spending long hours with my saving account and bills before me, throwing numbers and seeing where it'd get me, my financial state showed that spending money on the membership renewal would set me back, and I'd not be able to catch up for several months. And with the upcoming increase in the water bill, plus the new sales tax law (something we had never paid before), it's possible that might create a hole in my pocket would be bigger. The way things are going, I don't even know if I'll have a job several months from now.

Remember what my horoscope said for this month? "Soon Mars will move from your House of Your Crazy Self to your House of Spending Too Much." I think Mars managed to stay in both houses at the same time, because it's been crazy, and I've been spending a lot. "When the big bonus check shows up, don't blow it on a new computer as your old one is really fine." I'm still waiting for that one though and today is the last day. *sighs*

So, today is the last day for me to renew my RWA membership. Sadly, I won't since it has become a luxury I can no longer afford. Maybe in a few years from now...

Always wanted to write a book

2006-06-29T00:05:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I was reading Romancing the Blog when I ran into an article written by Jordan Summers, Just what makes that little old ant think he can move that rubber tree plant and every Joe Blow off the street believe he can write a book? As I read it, this quote grabbed my attention:

I’ve always wanted to write a book. I even have an idea that I think would be great.

Why, you wonder. *stands up* Hello. My name is Silma, and I've always wanted to write a romance novel. I even have an idea that I think would be great.

You see, that was me until 2 years ago. For years I wanted to write a novel. I believed if so and so could do it, then so could I. Besides, I felt justified by the fact that I have a BA in Literature. (Look at me. This little piece of paper says I'm an expert in Literature, so that means I can write it too.) I talked about writing novels until I noticed people avoiding me at parties and friends not calling often. I don't blame them. I'm sure they were bored to death. But even when I stopped talking about it out loud, inside I kept thinking about it. I was obsessed. Oh sure, I jolted down every idea (scenes, dialogues, titles, character names, etc.) that popped in my head. Sometimes I'd write a few scenes, but I never finished any story. Why? Work. Yep. That was my excuse. A valid one, btw, but still there it was.

Then 4 years ago I quit my job of 17 years and began a new one. Finally I had nights for myself. So I found myself pondering what to do with the extra free time. Then after catching up with a lot of stuff in my life (like the huge pile of TBR books, letters to friends, creating websites, etc.), 2 years ago I began thinking writing again. After 15 years of talking about it, I decided to stop talking about it and do it.

Naive as I was I thought it'd be easy. Soon I discovered that it wasn't. Writing a novel was much more than just putting a string of words together. Even putting that "idea that I thought would great" for a story was harder than I expected.

So it hit me that there was so much more involved in writing a novel than just, well, writing it. I began searching the web and found a few fabulous groups that helped me learn more about writing romance novels. But as I was learning to write a romance, I became aware that there are a number of subgenres so I explored and experimented, trying to find my niche. (I didn't even know there was such thing when I began this journey.)

Two years ago I stepped on the road and began a journey that has changed me in so many ways. The journey has ended yet. I'd dare to say, I'm barely beginning. Along the way I've met a lot of wonderful people who had helped me soften the rocky patches.

Even thought it might be true that "inside each person there's a book," the process per se of writing a book is a skill that must be learned through hardwork and discipline.

Hello. My name is Silma, and I always want to write a romance novel. I even have an idea that I think would be great. *g*

To renew my RWA membership or not to renew

2006-06-28T08:43:00.000-04:00

That has been my dilemma since I received my renew form on the mail last week. $75 for renewing my membership? That's a lot of money. To me anyway. Especially now. With the $105,000 mortage, the recent increase in the prices of gas, electricity, and water. On top of that there are all these odd-and-ends that you have to repair around the house. All is going up except my paycheck. I didn't get a raise last year, and I'm not holding my breath this year. So those $75 will make a hole in my budget.

Some think that I should think of the benefits I'm getting. Honestly, I've been a member for 2 years, and I've not seen much benefits out of it. The only thing I get is their RWR magazine, which is good with its updates on the romance industry. Other than that... I signed up for a three of their special interest groups online. In the beginning I posted on RWA Online and From the Heart. But I was in other more active romance online groups, and trying to keep up with all the posts was too time consuming. I was spending too much time on the net rather than writing, so I stopped posting on them. I didn't even participate in Futuristic, Fantasy and Paranormal after I signed up for it. Then there's the RWA National conferences. Big deal. I'll never go to one anyway. Too expensive. I can't afford to spend thousands of dollars when there are other (more important) things I could pay with that money.

Yeah, I know you're wondering why I've got my panties on twist over that matter when the reasons for not renewing my RWA membership are so clear. Want to know why? Peer pressure. I want other romance writers to take me seriously. There you go. My little secret is out. Let's face it I'm already sick and tired of other romance writers thinking that I'm in it as a hobby just because I'm not interested in getting an agent and don't care about writing for NY publishers. That is already making me an oddball in my peers' eyes. Well, I am not. I'm damn serious about writing romance novels. If I weren't, why would I be wasting my time writing at all? So it hurts sometimes to see that attitude towards me. I've got to make myself sound "official" about my writing. To validate my reasons to be a romance writer. So I feel that if I'm not part of RWA, then I'd giving another reason to look less serious about writing.

Well, the last day to send the papers with the check is this Friday. Otherwise, I'll have to pay the full fair. I still don't know what to do. Still waging the ramifications of whatever decision I make.

Even more June hot releases

2006-06-23T06:59:00.000-04:00

If you've been following my "What I'm Reading" section on this blog (left-side bar), you may have noticed that I've not been in a mood to read romance novels. Instead I've devoted my time to the latest trilogy in the Star Wars universe, Dark Nest trilogy. This one takes place 5 years after the New Jedi Order series, in which the Jedi comfronted the Yuuzhan Vong. But between Star Wars books I've squeezed a few short romance stories to read. You all want to sink your teeth on some ebooks? Here are some hot reads.

Snowbound
Author: Susan Greene
Genre: Contemporary
Download: Cobblestone Press

All Katherine wanted was a relaxing week of vacation. All Jonah wanted was quiet and solitude to work on his book. When destiny throws them into one another's paths, they must decide if what they have is real or simply the result of being Snowbound.

Enduring Promise
Author: Tempest Knight
Genre: Paranormal/Vampire
Download: Cobblestone Press
Armand died saving Giselle from a vampire-hunting mob. Before dying, he vowed to return. Three centuries later, feeling lonely, Giselle is about to end her life when Armand wanders into her house. Except now he’s named Evan, and he doesn’t remember her. Can she awaken his memories before dawn?

Crossing Borders
Author: Cora Zane
Genre: Werewolf/Shifter
Download: Cobblestone Press
Two years have passed since Cole Holbrook was exiled from his pack. Now he’s back, determined to claim Laney Parker as his mate, even if it means trespassing onto enemy territory to take her. Nothing will stop him. Not even his old rival--Laney’s pack leader brother, Seth.

Ten Elements or Words I Always Use in My Stories

2006-06-22T09:12:00.000-04:00

Ten Elements or Words I Always Use in My Stories

1. My heroines always Coke or Vanilla Coke. Okay, I know the latter is already out of the market, but hey!, maybe they might bring it back.

2. My heroines are divorced without kids. The funny thing is that I'm single without kids. Go figure. *lol*

3. My heroines are mostly gamma. I think I only have one alpha heroine.

4. Overused words: see, glance, gaze, look, tilt head, feel, walk, turn

5. The majority of my heroines seem to be writers, latinas.

6. My heroes aren't too Alpha.

7. I spend more time dealing with the internal struggle inside my hero and my heroine (falling in love).

8. Most of my heroes are the ones with the supernatural powers.

9. Most of my heroes have money and don't need to work.

10. If there's an external conflict, then it overshadows the "falling in love" part.

Pretty uneventful

2006-06-19T23:58:00.000-04:00

After two weeks of living hell, I was expecting to face some kind of maelstrom on my first day at work. To my...er...relief, the day went by without a hitch. Of course, I was tense all the time, expecting something bad to jump at me at any given time. However, there was nobody in my office but me. My co-worker was sick so I had the office all to myself. And what did I do? Put some heavy metal music and dance naked! Just kidding! *rofl* Seriously, I opened the file with my wereanimal story. I added a couple of rough scenes to it which amounted to about 1,200K. Tonight I logged into the Romance Divas website for their workshop, Buzz Your Book Workshop, with Marianne Mancusi. All in all, it's been quite a change of pace.

My own wolf

2006-06-19T07:33:00.000-04:00

The day is officially over

2006-06-18T23:55:00.000-04:00

Yep. This is it. My vacations are over. And didn't I tell you the day wasn't over and could get worst? *maniacal laugh* I'm the one who's sick with diarreah. Then my computer got some kind of nasty bug, which didn't allow me to do much, so I had to end up reformatting the hard disk.

My last day of vacation

2006-06-18T16:09:00.000-04:00

Last night I thought the least I could do was spend my last day of vacation peacefully. Maybe doing some writing. (I really wanted to get back to my wereanimal story, and I needed to check the second wereanimal story to make sure things were tying in fine.) I mean, things could get worst, right? HELL YEAH! And here you people kept telling me that things couldn't get worst, that they only could get better. Ha, ha, ha! *maniacal laugh* This morning my mother woke me up and told me to take to the hospital. I blinked unable to believe what I'd heard. This is my mother, the woman who refuses to go to doctors and hospitals, telling me to take to the emergency room. Shit! It had to be damn serious. To make a long story short, I took her to the emergency room where we were for 4 hours while they ran some tests and hooked an IV on her. Finally, the doctor gave her some medicine and let her go. Luckily Walgreens was opened, so I took her home and bought the medicines.

So much for a peaceful day for doing some writing. Can this get worst? Well, the day hasn't ended yet, my dearies. So it just might...

Still here

2006-06-17T21:12:00.000-04:00

Yeah, well, I woke this morning. Realized I was still alive. Pissed off. But alive. I looked back on my two-week vacation. Only two good things went right.

1) All the heavy furniture is already at the new house.

2) I found the receipt for the new power-steering oil pump, which I thought I'd lost.

I thought about all the things I had to do today. Then I figured I'd end up fucking them up. And I was still pissed. So instead I went to see X-Men 3. Aaaaahhh... Fights. Explotions. Destruction. Death. Damn, it sure revived me! *evil grin*

Someone please put me out of my misery

2006-06-16T22:03:00.000-04:00

Can my life suck more? Sheesh! I took a 2-week vacation for the sole purpose of buying barstools, a daybed or futton, and the water reserve for my new house. So in this way I could move into it by the end of the month.

But oh no! Here's what I've gotten out of my 2-week vacation instead:

1) I've been plagued with car problems. So far I've spent $295 on repairs, and it's still leaking the power steering oil.

2) My house was flooded when the hose of the toilet broke. (It's been a week, and the repairman hasn't shown up yet.)

3) The place where my bathroom cabinets were being made burnt down to the ground.

4) Inara Press (to whom I'd hoped to submit my non-erotic romance stories) closed down.

Please someone fucking shoot me! NOW!

The workshop slut is back...

2006-06-14T22:55:00.000-04:00

It's been a long time since I've attended a writing workshop online. (I think the last one was Deep POV with Cara King.) It's not like there hasn't been any good ones, mind you. It's just that I've been too busy with other things, and let the opportunities slip under the cracks. But not anymore, baby. I'm back! Starting today Romance Divas is having one of many great workshops for June, Character Profiling with Ronda Thompson.

Oooh... This one promises to be really good. She's already posting charcter sheets and stuff. I'm pantser and never done much of character profiling before beginning a story. So this is going to be an interesting experiment for me. *g*

If you're interested in the workshop, it's free. So join Romance Divas today!

More June hot releases

2006-06-13T15:00:00.000-04:00

Looking for a quick read this summer? Something to entertain you while spending your hours out on a hammock? Here is something to wet your appetite. Check out these cool ebooks!

Cup of Fate
Author: Cassandra Curtis
Download: Amber Quill Press

Can one woman find true love in tea leaves? Or is it a tempest in a teacup? Bryn Tuttle lost everything due to her bad taste in men. Now she's starting over fresh. In the misty bluegrass hills of Kentucky, she finds a new job, apartment and friends. When a co-worker invites her yard-sale shopping one weekend, she decides to tag along, never realizing fate has something else in store. They discover a rare item—a mysterious, antique, fortune-telling teacup. Bryn never suspects that a single sip from the Cup of Fate will change her life, that her future is actually linked to the tea leaves that cling inside. But when she drinks from the cup and next awakens, she soon comprehends that nothing will ever be the same...

Aurora's Passion
Author: Bebe Thomas
Download: Freya's Bower

Kris Anderssen is having a bad week. She lost her dream job and her lover on the same day and is in danger of losing her swanky New York apartment. She's regrouping by spending the Thanksgiving holiday in Aurora, her hometown. It's anything but relaxing. Her grandmother won't stop talking about the Northern Lights, the goddess Freya, and Norwegian folklore. Plus, Kris is more conflicted than ever, finding herself caught in a love triangle between her hot former boyfriend and her sexy best friend. She has feelings for each man; how can she possibly choose between them?

You Again
Author: Dayna Hart
Download: Freya's Bower

Part I: Cherry

"Wild Cherry" is the music industry's newest wild child. Her attitude and outrageous behaviour hide a secret, one she intends to keep at all costs. One man, however, threatens everything. A reporter who wants to write the real story. Mac is the one man she shouldn't let past her defenses, and yet, she can't seem to keep him away.

Part II: Laurel

When he first walks into the bookstore-café, Laurel is drawn to Drex, though she couldn't explain why. The headaches begin soon after. She begins remembering things, though she can't tell if they're real, or simply the tortured imaginings of her mind. When she collapses at Drex's feet, she needs to learn the difference. Or die trying.

Lycan Instinct
Author: Brandi Broughton
Download: Cobblestone Press

Instinct is her only guide amid secrets, seduction...and murder

Just bored...

2006-06-11T01:37:00.000-04:00

So I decided to check my horoscope for this month...

Cancer: Soon Mars will move from your House of Your Crazy Self to your House of Spending Too Much. When the big bonus check shows up, don't blow it on a new computer as your old one is really fine. Put in an Overseas ( Southeast Asia maybe) Mutual Fund (with American management )and forget about the spending part. Take it from a Taurus, me, about investments.

I'm getting a big check? *blinks* Who's going to die and leave me the inheritance?

Friggin' Friday

2006-06-09T22:13:00.000-04:00

This sure has been one heck of a day. My car was suppossed to be ready for today, but it wasn't. On Monday the attendant at the car shop told me the rack & pinion would be deliever yesterday afternoon. When I got there, they had no idea of what had happened. They made me wait until to this morning to tell me that they didn't get the part, but that perhaps they might get it tomorrow afternoon. (Yeah, riiight. Seeing is believing...) So I went to the mechanic and told me to reschedule (AGAIN) the appointment to see the car. He had no problem with that except that he might be able to see my car until the end of next week. Ehem... Hello? I need my car fixed - NOW!!! I took vacations now so I could go about running errants that I can't usually do while I work. There are tonz of things I need to have ready before I move to the new house. And what have I done so far? I only talked to the man who's going to build the bathroom cabinet. AAAGGGHHH!!!

So what did I do to calm down? Well, what every sane woman would do - GO SHOPPING! *g* Of course, shopping has various meanings to women. For some this means buying shoes, others clothes, etc. To me, it's books. *lol* Yeah, I'm weird that way. Anyway, I went to Borders. Gosh, there were so many good titles this time around. I was surprised to see MaryJanice Davidson's Undead and Unreturnable on paperback. But it was Lynn Viehl's Dark Need: A Novel of the Darkyn that captured my heart (and my money!). I'm going to have so much fun reading tonight. *g*

A little (tarot) reading today

2006-06-07T22:54:00.000-04:00

Tonight I took out my favorite tarot deck from the box in which I'd put it to move it to the new house and did a little reading. Yeah, I do that when something troubles me. I believe that all the answers are inside oneself, but sometimes they're locked in the subconscious, which needs the visual part to communicate.

This is what I got:

King of Cups
in the Past position.

You are fortunate in your achievements. You have accomplished much, built a good business or career for yourself. Perhaps you have a stable, loving family life. These things give you much satisfaction, but there is a longing in your heart. It is as if in gaining power and accomplishments, you have lost touch with your creative side. Seek an artistic or creative outlet, nurture your emotions.

Ace of Swords
in the Present position.

You have the gift of thought. Use it rightly, to see the world clearly, to communicate well, and create a happy, healthy reality.

Judgement
in the Future position.

The message of Judgement is clear. You are being called to do something. You might not want to hear it and are actively drowning it out with noise of your daily life. You might be afraid of the call and the changes it will bring. Listen to it and face it with courage and action. It promises a more fulfilling life.

I get the feeling that they're trying to tell me something, but I'm too thick-headed to get it.

Not fair!

2006-06-06T18:00:00.000-04:00

I'm a big Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series fan. So when I heard she'd released her latest book of the series, Dark Side of the Moon, I rushed to Barnes and Nobles.com to order it. I couldn't wait two weeks to get it through our local Borders. Well, guess what? The book is in HARDCOVER! WTF? Hardcovers are too expensive. I can't spend that much money on a book. I can only get it on paperback, and that'll take like, what?, a year to be release? Oh man... Does this mean all her Dark Hunter books will be released as hardcovers from now on? That just sucks!

More upsetting news

2006-06-05T16:51:00.000-04:00

Yep, bad news on the car. The autopart shop called this morning as they promised me on Saturday. They can't get the rack and pinion until Thursday afternoon. AAAGGHHH! Great. Just freaking great. I'll be car-less for almost a week. I went to reschedule the appointment with the mechanic this afternoon. Now it's set for Friday morning. *sighs* What else can go wrong?

Tackling a nasty chore...

2006-06-04T22:58:00.000-04:00

...and it's not the editing of the samba story. Yeah, I know today is the last day to submit for Phaze's samba story, so I should be pouring every ounce of inspiration and perspiration into it. But I didn't. I decided not to submit the story, although it's finished. I'm not (very) happy with it. After reading it through, I feel like it needs some work. Plus there's a lack of direction in it. It can either go into comedy or drama. It's a bit of both it's not well balanced. So I'll let the story simmer a bit, see how it feels, and then do the necessary work.

Anyway, I'm on vacations so I'm hoping to move into the new house I bought a year ago. The renovations are all done (at least the ones I could afford!), except for the bath cabinet in the master bathroom. Today, instead of writing, I decided to tackle the nastiest of all chores - draining and cleaning my fish tank. To make the long story short, it took me 4 freaking hours. But it's cleaned and ready to be moved into its new house. *g*

Ooops, my car did it again

2006-06-03T22:29:00.000-04:00

Yep. Car troubles. Again. Yesterday I noticed a weird sound coming from the car. When I parked, I bent and saw power-steering fluid leaking. Great! I paid $68 and for what? I thought the whole thing was fixed. Oh well... The leak wasn't too bad, but I talked to the mechanic anyway. He told me he'd see it on Monday. So fine, I went on using the car to run some errants, but I noticed the leaking got worse. Not as bad as this morning! I talked to the mechanic and agreed to see it right away. He claimed it was the pump, so I borrowed mom's car and drove all the way to the next town to buy it. It cost me $115. *sighs* Yeah, I saw dollars signs fly away. Anyway, I brought the pump, and my mom took her car and went shopping. About an hour later the mechanic showed up and told me that it was still leaking power-steering fluid even with the new pump, and he'd consulted the matter with other two mechanics that agreed the problem was the rack and pinion. The first thing I thought was, "Not again?!" I changed the darn thing 3 years ago. Insert more dollar signs flying away here. Those parts are damn expensive. Last time I bought a used one for $189. To make the long story short, I got out the receipt of the old rack and pinion and went to the place where I bought it. They checked but it was past midday on a Saturday when I went so they couldn't tell me if they had it or not until Monday. Agh! I mean, it's not like I expect to the rack and pinion to be changed the same day. But it'd have been nice to know that I had the part with me. The only good thing is that right where I live there's a new place that changes them, so I talked to the mechanic there and he said he'll see the car Tuesday in the morning. *double sighs*

New ebook releases for summer!

2006-06-02T06:45:00.000-04:00

You wanted it hot, you got it! These are among the hottest ebook releases for June. Check them out!

Fire and Ice
Author: Vivienne King
Genre: Fantasy
Download: Cobblestone Press

Lumina, princess of the Ice Kingdom. Pyroth, prince of Fire. Reuniting after a ten-month separation, they cannot resist stealing away into the night for a rendezvous of burning sexual passion. What Lumina and Pyroth cannot know is that this night of passion must last them for the next two years.

Waking The Shadows
Author: Elisabeth Drake
Genre: Paranormal
Download: Freya's Bower

The last thing Arielle Thompson needs is romance. It's tough enough risking your butt on a day-to-day basis fighting vampires, demons, and mud monsters for the FBI's Paranormal Investigations Unit. Adding stress over dying and leaving a lover behind? No thanks. Besides, who needs a man when you've got a vibrator? Of course, that hasn't stopped Arielle from checking out her sexy as sin vampire partner, Jackson. While she knows he's got the hots for her, neither of them have acted on their impulses. But when they're sent to investigate rogue demonic activity in backwater Louisiana, the dam bursts loose and everything heats up..

Bound by Love
Author: Loribelle Hunt
Genre: Contemporary/Light Bondage
Download: Cobblestone Press

Nikki just wants to get out unscathed. From the sex club where she goes to track down an employee, that is. Her old friend and long time admirer, Mack, on the other hand, has something else in mind entirely. Complete submission of her body and soul.

Sunset Key
Author: Cassidy Kent
Download: Phaze

Freesia Daniels, personnel specialist and consummate planner, wasn't prepared to get the boot from her company for possessing a heart. When she decides to return home from Boston to the sunny beaches of Key West to lick her wounds, she discovers her heartbroken past has finally caught up with her in the form of Zachary Gray, her childhood sweetheart. He lures her to his island getaway and lands them smack in the middle of a raging hurricane. Lightning doesn't often strike twice, but this storm might give them both a second chance at love.

Pondering opportunities

2006-06-01T10:32:00.000-04:00

Lately I've been confronted with a series of opportunities that can further my writing career. Or at least help me start one. *lol* Anyway, I've been confused about what to do, which ones to accept. Is this the best time to accept any offers? What if I'm being too eager and make the wrong decision? So I did a little reading. It's a three-card draw that I designed many years ago. I ask three questions related to each other, and each card shows a part of the answer to the problem.

Ace of Swords

You have the gift of thought. Use it rightly, to see the world clearly, to communicate well, and create a happy, healthy reality.

Ace of Wands - Reversed

Be aware of ignoring opportunities and inaction. The Ace of Wands is a gift that requires the recipient to take action.

Seven of Pentacles

You have sown seeds of some sort. They are bearing fruit and it is time for the harvest. Take time to compare the investment with the results. If it is not what you’d hoped, determine what you can do differently next time.

Hmm... It's interesting that the last card has shown in the past four readings I've done. Like it's asking me to stop and take stock of the results of my actions. But at this moment I seem to be caught in a thing that's snowballing, and I can't stop and step back to ponder about what's going on.

Review of the Memorial Weekend

2006-05-29T23:34:00.000-04:00

Memorial Weekend. It was anything but memorable. Here I had a three-day weekend to do some serious writing and finish my samba story, and instead I wasted it away. Saturday and Sunday I spent it going to the movies and shopping. At night I tried to sit and write but after a couple of minutes I'd turn off the computer and grab a book instead. Still I figured I could get some writing crammed today. Yeah, riiiight. I binged on sweets during the whole weekend, and being a hypoglycemic, I woke up t his morning totally sick. At one point I thought I'd be rushed to the hospital. Luckily I didn't. But I was too sick to do any writing that made sense, especially with the bad migraine I woke up with from my nap. Oh, I battled out with the effects of the medicines and forced myself to sit before the computer and do some writing. That anything I wrote made any sense... well that's another story. Anyway, I sent it to Laura for a quick lookie.

Ice Cream Indulgences by Sign

2006-05-28T23:10:00.000-04:00

Ice Cream Indulgences by Sign
Astrological clues to your cravings
By Simone Butler
Provided by Tarot.com

Do you melt for Butter Pecan? You're probably an orderly, detail-oriented Virgo or Capricorn. But if Double Chocolate Chunk makes your heart beat faster, you could be a creative, life-of-the-party Leo or Sagittarius. Whether you secretly scarf it down at midnight or have one tasteful scoop for dessert, the ice cream you adore is a tip-off to your sign. What treats tempt you to indulge?

Aries (March 21 to April 19)
Forget about non-fat frozen yogurt -- a luscious scoop of Chocolate Mousse Royale from Baskin-Robbins is more your style. A child at heart, you enjoy the sheer fun of chocolate-dipped cones and banana splits. You helped make Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough the second-most popular Ben & Jerry's flavor (after Cherry Garcia). In your youth, your quick metabolism and love of exercise easily burns off those calories. But take care as you get older -- your impulsive nature could get you into trouble.

Taurus (April 20 to May 20)
You have a sweet tooth, Taurus, and you're also quite social. Because you like the finer things in life, you can be found at a local bistro sharing a dish of rich, creamy gelato with a friend. Or, you may opt for the sinful Founder's Favorite at Cold Stone Creamery … sweet cream ice cream, pecans, brownies, fudge and caramel. A Taurus friend once said that eating a bowl of chocolate ice cream topped with raspberries, almonds and Amaretto is "comparable to having good sex … you can enjoy it slowly, to the very last drop."

Gemini (May 21 to June 20)
You can never settle on just one thing, Gemini, so you'll agonize forever at Baskin-Robbins before making a decision. You may end up with a triple-decker cone you'll never finish, but at least it satisfies your need for variety. Chocolate Chip is a good choice for you, as it matches your charming, competent nature -- layer it with Pistachio and Strawberry Cheesecake for a delectable combination. You might go for Ben & Jerry's Half-Baked Ice Cream or Chunky Monkey for their clever names alone.

Cancer (June 21 to July 22)
Dairy products are your favorite indulgence, Cancer, and you like your ice cream rich and gooey. Because you're security-oriented, vanilla is your favorite flavor -- it brings back pleasant memories of mother's milk. Häagen-Dazs Dulce de Leche or Vanilla Swiss Almond are right up your alley. You might try making your own ice cream, as you're handy in the kitchen. But it's also wise to keep some lo-cal frozen yogurt on hand to avoid those compulsive trips to Dairy Queen for Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Blizzards.

Leo (July 23 to Aug. 22)
You enjoy the high life, Leo. Häagen-Dazs may have invented their exotic Baileys Irish Cream and Crème Brulee just for you. Chocolate, however, is your true passion, as it complements your zesty, dramatic nature. Ben & Jerry's New York Super Fudge Chunk or a vanilla Dove bar dipped in the finest dark chocolate rings your chimes. You easily get bored with routine; try something new like Cold Stone Creamery's For Coffee Lovers Only … coffee ice cream, Heath Bar bits, roasted almonds and caramel. Yum!

Virgo (Aug. 23 to Sept. 22)
When you do indulge, Virgo, you tend to make healthy choices like raspberry frozen yogurt or green tea soy ice cream. But you walk the straight and narrow in so many areas of your life that sometimes you just have to let loose. On those rare occasions, nothing but a hot fudge sundae will suffice. A study made by Dreyer's ice cream discovered that orderly, perfectionistic types like yourself buddy-up best to Butter Pecan. Perhaps it reminds you of the carefree days of youth?

Libra (Sept. 23 to Oct. 22)
You're so good about watching your weight, Libra, that we're unlikely to find you chowing down on chocolate fudge brownie ice cream. More likely, you'll savor a small dish of lemon sorbet or nonfat vanilla frozen yogurt … perhaps adorned with a few sprinkles of toasted almonds or chocolate chips. If a social situation demands it, you might indulge in a single cone of English toffee or dish of Häagen-Dazs Black Raspberry Chip. But you'll insist your partner take the lion's share.

Scorpio (Oct. 23 to Nov. 21)
You're an all-or-nothing person, Scorpio. Either you eschew sweet treats altogether or you'll pig out on a banana split with extra hot fudge, whipped cream and maraschino cherries. So what if they're preserved in formaldehyde -- you only live once! Rich, sexy flavors like Kahlua and Cream get your engine firing. Fantasizing about a pint of Mocha Almond Fudge may seem like a better option than calling that love interest who's nothing but trouble -- but indulging in too much of either could prove dangerous.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 to Dec. 21)
You're always in a time crunch, Sagittarius. Dove and Häagen-Dazs bars are perfect for you … that way you can get your chocolate fix on the run. You're always the life of the party, so you burn chocolate like fuel. Not that you really need the caffeine fix with your high energy. In fact, a midnight binge on your favorite Ben & Jerry's New York Super Fudge Chunk or coffee ice cream with chocolate syrup can keep you up all night. Try getting a thrill from vanilla instead -- you'll end up sleeping like a baby.

Capricorn (Dec. 22 to Jan. 19)
Your iron-clad discipline doesn't let you surrender to ice cream too often, Capricorn. When you do, it's likely to be a small dish of a time-tested favorite like Strawberries and Cream or English Toffee. Anything weird like Ginger Soy Dream or Ben & Jerry's Phish Food is apt to leave you cold. On the other hand, your quest for the best and your natural sense of elegance may incline you toward Häagen Dazs' Crème Brulee or Almond Hazelnut Swirl … especially if the whole family is indulging.

Aquarius (Jan. 20 to Feb. 18)
You'll try anything once, Aquarius, from fried green tea ice cream at the local sushi bar to the corner ice cream parlor's pineapple-walnut-butterscotch sundae. Offbeat combos strike your fancy. You helped push Cherry Garcia -- cherry ice cream, chocolate flakes and cherries -- to the top of the charts at Ben & Jerry's. As a child, you were thrilled by the "forbidden fruit" of Daquiri Ice sherbet at Baskin-Robbins. You won't turn down something exotic like Häagen-Dazs' Bailey's Irish Cream or White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle, either.

Pisces (Feb. 19 to March 20)
You're a sensualist at heart, Pisces. You swoon for the luxurious mix of chocolate ice cream swirled with peanut butter, or a vanilla sundae with caramel topping, whipped cream and toasted nuts. Jamocha Almond Fudge is one of your favorites … the combination of creamy and nutty textures turns you on. You find Mint Chocolate Chip refreshing, and you adore the sensation of those thin chocolate strips melting on your tongue. Starbucks' Java Chip keeps you going when you're burning the candle at both ends.

About the Author
Simone Butler is an intuitive astrologer with more than 20 years of experience in helping people engage with the mystery of their lives. She has taught many astrology classes and workshops. Her daily forecasts are featured in the Starscroll, and her articles have appeared in The Mountain Astrologer magazine. She has worked with 12 Signs, Inc. since 1992. Simone lives in a rural hideaway in Escondido, California with her cat, Queen Bess.

Falling in love with DaVinci all over again

2006-05-27T19:45:00.000-04:00

I went to visit my goddaughter today to take her birthday present. Her b-day was yesterday but she spent it with her friends. So in the spur of the moment we decided to go and see The DaVinci Code. I've read the critiques, and I don't care what they say. I loved the movie. Sure the movie version has a few things different from the book, which I read btw. But I don't care. It was good. I wasn't sure Tom Hanks could pull of the character of Prof. Langston, but he did a very good job. I was impressed.

One more lesson

2006-05-26T23:32:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I forgot to add to the list of things I've learned about my writing process that I can't write short stories. Remember the samba story I've working on for Phaze's contest? I started writing it with the idea of making just 5K long. Guess what? It's already almost 8K. And I'm not finished yet! Agh!

What have you learned about your writing process?

2006-05-25T21:23:00.000-04:00

Erotic romance Jordan Summers blogged about this today and asked this very question. So I thought I'd do a little soul searching here about my writing (something I've been question a lot lately), and here's what I came up with.

1. I've learned that I'm a pantser and write in the story in non-sequence and figure out what to put where when editing.

2. I've learned that I'm better writing action than romance. It's hard for me to get into the deep POV.

3. I've learned I'm a (pathetically) slow writer. It takes me weeks, and sometimes months, to write a simple 20K story.

4. I've learned that I strive on competition to keep writing. I need to be around those who can write better than me. So I know there's always someone out there who can kick my ass.

5. I've learned that it's okay to go through periods when I don't write.

6. I've learned that I can't force myself to write when I'm in one of those "off seasons." It just makes matters worst.

How about you? What have you learned?

Are you an author follower?

2006-05-24T20:15:00.000-04:00

Recently author Viviene King blogged about writers shifting gear and moving on to other genres and asked how we readers felt about it. That got me thinking about my reading habit and how it has changed over the past decade.

In the beginnig I was what I call an author-follower. I had a series of favorite writers, and I'd devour their books no matter what genre. Of course, they all wrote romance. *lol* However, I'd read Johanna Lindsey's futuristic romances as well as her historicals with equal devotion. I didn't care if they shifted genres as long as it was this or that author.

Today I find myself looking at my TBR pile, and the only thing that all the books have in common is the genre. I like reading paranormal romances. And even then I'm very selective. I pick a book and read the first 3 chapters. If it fails to catch my attention, then I put it back in the shelf and pick another.

How about you? Are you an author-follower or a genre-follower?

Overhauling the story?

2006-05-23T21:59:00.000-04:00

This afternoon I didn't get much writing done. To be honest, I've been reconsidering the story. If I keep it the way it's going, it'll end up longer than 5K. I can't have that at this point since I won't be able to have it critiqued and edited by June 4 when the Phaze's Samba contest ends. So I've been considering chopping down a few scenes. Perhaps cut out the heroine's girlfriend altogether. Although the setting will remain the same, I might have to create a new whole GMC for the heroine. This will also bring a new set of heroes. I might be able to keep the sex scenes though. Just change the names. But it'd be one major overhaul. *sighs* I just wonder if I can have this done on time...

Weekend review and BIAW

2006-05-22T08:50:00.000-04:00

You'd think that being a weekend and with only 500 words more to go I'd use this time to finish my samba story for the Phaze - Samba contest. Riiight. The only time I touched the samba story was Sunday night when I went over the edits following Laura Bacchi's critique of the only sex scene I sent from the two I'd promised to have ready. *sighs*

So what did I do this weekend? My car was giving me trouble since last Saturday. Something was wrong with the power steering. It was spilling its oil. And every time I turned the steering wheel around the car made this weird noise. So I didn't want to drive it around, but it couldn't be helped. Saturday I had some errands to do. It was unavoidable. Worst part was it rained and I got drenched. Just great. My goddaughter's birthday is this Friday, so on Sunday I went to the mall looking for her present. And since I was already there, I dropped by Borders just to check the books. I didn't buy any though. This week's discount coupon wasn't all that great.

Yeah, I know I'm lagging on my samba story, and tomorrow my BIAW ends, so I'm hoping to make some progress today and tomorrow. I just want to make edits between Wednesday and Thursday before sending the story to my CPs and see what happens.

Jordan Summer's BiaW: Day 4

2006-05-19T21:08:00.000-04:00

Last night I decided to follow the suggestions and keep the story on the heroine's POV. No big loss. I've only written two scenes only from the heroes' POV, so I put them on a separate file just in case I need them during the editing.

Anyway, today's word count was 1,500 words. And basically all I did was flesh out 3 out of 4 sex scenes, and the separate intros between the heroine and the two heroines. OMG, I'm 4,500 words into the story, and I still have to flesh out the first 2 chapters. Let alone write the intro of one the two sex chapters. Gosh, I've not even written the ending! I just realized that I've got only 500 words to go before hitting the 5K mark and there's so much left to be written. *hits panic button* Please, someone tell me I've not been so stupid to dig myself into one of those long stories. Why can't I keep the stories short? *bangs her head against the desk*

Jordan Summer's BiaW: Day 3

2006-05-18T17:02:00.000-04:00

So far I've written everything from the heroine's POV. I don't know if that's a good thing or not. I've been struggling with both heroes POVs. I guess at one point I'll have to make them meet so they both find out they've been sleeping with the same woman and agree to have sex with her together (can you say threesome? *evil grin*) Since I want this story to be 5K (or barely over it), I wonder if it'll matter that most of the story is from her POV instead of their POV.

Word count today: 1K
Total word count: 3K