MY SUMMER SO FAR: LIFE, TV, AND BOOKS

Okay, so summer has started off kind of crazy. About 1 ½ weeks ago, my dad had a heart attack. Which is totally scary. I mean he’s only 54. And we’ve been worried.  He’s doing better now, but getting those kinds of calls makes me a nervous wreck. And in the midst of all this, I was in the middle of revisions for agent lady and for small press editor. So yeah, meeting deadlines, while dealing with family crisis totally stressful (LOL).

But we got through it. Dad is home now (as of Sunday) and seems to be doing better.  I told him we have go find a better way to get together on the weekends and quit meeting in the Heart Center. Dad thought this was funny (hehehe).

In order to relieve said stress, I’ve started writing a new story, which I’ll call “D”.  D is a YA Thriller. Have I mentioned, I’ve never written a thriller before? LOL. So I’m trying something new. So far, I’m liking it. I’m a couple of chapters in now and am hoping to start being able to get some word count down. This story is a challenge for me because I’ve always wanted to write a thriller (kind of like the ones I read as a teen) and now I’ll find out if I’m any good at it.

Another stress reliever has been reading.  So far this summer I’ve read Divergent by Veronica Roth (which I can’t recommend enough—totally fabulous YA Dystopian/Thriller), Sean Griswold’s Head by Lindsey Leavitt (YA contemporary with humor/romance/serious family stuff—so fun), The Iron Fey Trilogy by Julie Kagawa. I’ll be starting City of Fallen Angels tomorrow.

Now for my summer shows WOOHOO! They’re back on (and I’ve added a new one or two).  True Blood came back on. And I’ve been SO SO SO looking forward to it. I’ve also been watching The Voice, Falling Skies, and my new guilty pleasure is The Nine Lives of Chloe King.  The first episode seemed kind of cheesy, but once I got past it, I found myself LOVING THE SHOW.  I got my niece and daughter hooked on it now too. So every Tuesday night will be Chloe night. But I can’t wait until July when Haven and Ghost Hunter’s International come back on.

I hope everyone is having a FAB summer so far.  Hoping to spend some time in the pool this upcoming weekend and maybe do a little writing. Definitely need some down time.

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BOOK COVER for STAKING SHADOW…

 

 

 

And here is a glimpse at my PRETTY cover for my new YA Paranormal Romance/Dystopian novel coming out at the end of June 2011 with Noble Young Adult.

Really excited about it and can’t wait for everyone to read it.

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Blogging at Totally 4 YA today about SUMMER JOBS…

Hey everyone, I’m blogging at Totally 4 YA today about some of my best/worst summer jobs. Make sure to drop in!

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Guest Blogging at Adventures in Children’s Publishing Today…

Hey everyone, I’m guest blogging over at the FABULOUS Adventures in Children’s Publishing Blog today.  Come see how my journey to snagging an agent is like Star Wars (yep, I’m talking about one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE MOVIES).

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BACK FROM BLOGGITY HIATUS

PHEW! The last three weeks have been CHAOS! I repeat CHAOS!!! LOL. I managed to survive several award ceremonies for my kids (for grades/athletics etc), my step-son’s graduation, the talent show my kids participated in (which they were totally AWESOME), and soccer tournament.

 

Oh, and I can’t forget round 2 of edits from my lovely Agent Lady, which I sent back to her late last night. Had to bulk up a few scenes, dig a little deeper into some of my characters emotions.  But in the end, I was happy with the suggestions.  Hopefully, I should only need to do one more read through (once Agent Lady reads through my changes).  Then it’ll be off to the races (bites nails in nervous anticipation).

 

I’ve also gotten the chance to read some pretty good books lately (right now, I’m reading book 3 of the Iron Fey Series by Julie Kagawa).  In reading, I’ve come to the realization that I always fall for the underdog love interests. Seriously. In Twilight, I preferred Jacob, in the Mortal Instruments Series I wanted Clary to have a few more romantic moments with Simon, in the Iron Fey Series, I want Meghan to have some more moments with Puck.  And don’t get me started on Jem from the Infernal Devices series. Sigh. It’s not that I don’t like the UBER HOT HEROES, because I DO. LOL.  It’s just I always seem to fall in with the “best-friend guys”.  I mean they deserve some love too, right?

 

Just sayin. Hope everyone is having a GREAT beginning to their summer! This weekend we’ll be celebrating my daughter’s birthday by throwing her a pool party.  Should be lot’s of fun.

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