Shelter In Brotherly Love

In case you haven't heard, we've taken a pretty bad hit in south Texas this weekend. Hurricane Harvey dropped more than 40 inches of rain in some places, and isn't letting up. While it's no longer at hurricane status, it is still a massive storm stalled over the south and will continue to slam down rain for the rest of the week. This picture shows how they believe it will ride the coast before heading north in a few more days.

My family has been very lucky so far, (we live in the southeast along I10 just before you enter Louisiana) but things are not over yet. My house still has power, and my street is flood free... for the moment. However, one block away is flooded, and there is nothing open in most of the surrounding towns. No grocery stores, no restaurants, no doctors offices, nothing. Schools have already announced they are closed for at least another week.

Our local Wal-Mart opened for a short time this morning to sell what was left on their shelves, but it was sparse. I have to say, while there are always idiots aplenty in this world, for the most part I have been pleasantly surprised at the depth of compassion and support in our area. While I expected to find people in a "Black Friday" sort of frenzy over the last groceries in our area, instead they were nice, asking after each other, and helping people load what they could.

No one cared what your political views were, how you felt about education, historical statues, or art. People are coming together, as they should, to help. My faith in humanity has been somewhat restored.

Continued prayers are appreciated for us as this disaster continues. So many have already lost their homes, and the flooding will continue to rise for at least the next few days.

May you all find and share the compassion and brotherly love we deserve. God Bless!

Fiction Fallout and New Goals

Between taking a huge decrease in summer time work, and a larger increase in nonfiction projects previous to that, my fiction writing has been minimal so far this year. Aside from a few small pieces and a "flash fiction challenge" that I gave myself in May, my fiction output this year has taken a nose dive.

This weekend I'll be attempting to jump start my fiction goals by revisiting some old first drafts that have been collecting dust in my drawer, or on my hard drive. I'll be reassessing my goals for the rest of this year, something I do every few months. I hope you do the same. I want to complete several of the unfinished stand alone pieces, continue a series I let grow cold, and try a new genre.

I also want to get back in the habit of visiting with you, my readers and fellow bloggers. I must admit, I took a large break from visiting on social media this year - too much negativity zaps my creativity. However, I think I can safely return to you dear friends. If you'd like a visit, and promise there will be no rants, please leave a comment and link below.

By the way, if you are looking for submission possibilities check out https://writingcareer.com/

How are your WIP's coming along? Are you setting any new goals lately?

Vestiges of Summer

As I mentioned previously, we returned from our summer travels two weeks ago - just in time for me to teach a week of writing workshops for our local Girl Scout troop.

Since I don't believe in giving assignments that I myself am not willing to do... I began writing poetry again.

We tried a few timed writing exercises. It's been a while since I've written any poetry, so I thought I would share one with you. If you'd like to check out a first draft, and wouldn't mind offering some feedback, PM me and I'll trade critiques with you.

I produced each one in a 10 minute activity period. Thoughts and suggestions are welcome!

Pictures here are of a few stops along this years travels from southeast Texas to southwest California and back again. You can see more photos on my facebook and instagram pages.

I'd love to read your thoughts on my poems. I'd also like to see some of yours. Do you enjoy reading and writing poetry?

Who are some of your favorite poets?

IWSG: Pet Peeves

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh. Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs. You can also join us on twitter using the hashtag #IWSG, or on the Facebook page.

Now, IWSG hosts have changed up the format in an effort to make it more fun and interactive.Every month, they will announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG Day post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say. 

Don’t forget to visit others that day to see their answers. Want to join, or learn more? Visit our - Sign-up List.

JULY QUESTION: What are your pet peeves when reading/writing/editing?

MY ANSWER - There are several things that bother me as a reader/writer/editor: 

1) When writers put two spaces after a period.

2) When another author/editor/agent doesn't get back to me in the time frame which they set or we have agreed upon.

3) When writers use the same words or phrases over and over and over and over again.

4) Cliches

5) When I catch myself doing the very things that drive ME crazy ;-)
What pet peeves do you have?

Wrapping Up Summer

Last week I taught a series of writing workshops to a group of third through twelfth graders. Some of them truly amazed me with their grasp and love for storytelling. They also inspired me to write several new pieces. I'm excited to see where those current inspirations lead me.

The kids were really excited to see each other again after missing their friends for most of the summer. Classes at the local school officially resume on August 16th, but many of them are already returning to the campus for summer football, band, and other various activities.

I'll be enjoying the last two weeks of summer with my girls. We still have school shopping, annual check-ups, and a few other necessities to attend to in the next two weeks. I'm sure we'll also be enjoying several more summer reads - I introduced them to the Harry Potter series for the first time in June which turned out to be appropriate timing as it's the 20th anniversary.

While I'm not ready to send my girls back to school yet (is that normal?), I am ready to resume a schedule for my writing. I'll talk to you all again on Wednesday for the annual IWSG post!

How about you? How are you spending the last few weeks of summer?

Swing of Things

I'm back from vacation and attempting to get back into the swing of things.

The end of a vacation is always bittersweet. I hate that I'm leaving a relaxing environment of no worries. I hate that I'm leaving behind family I get to see so infrequently. I hate that I had to leave behind the beautiful southern California weather.

However, I'm happy to be back sleeping in my own bed again. I'm happy trying to return to a routine. I'm excited about getting back to writing!

This week I'm teaching the local Girl Scout troop a series of classes on writing. Today, we covered writing poetry, short stories, autobiographies, articles, and essays. I enjoyed sharing some of my published works with them. In turn, their enthusiasm and own beautiful creations inspired me to begin writing some new pieces today.

I'm looking forward to the rest of this week when we will be working on novels, screenplays, memoirs, and cookbooks. In all, I'd say this is a wonderful way to get back to reality.

How is your work coming along? Creating anything new lately? Have you taught any writing classes?

I'm Alive!

Thank you to everyone who has been commenting or emailing me. I'm doing well, and enjoying some much needed vacation time with family.

I have to be honest though: I haven't been writing much in the last few weeks. I'm reading some good books which I'll share with you later, but for now I'm just enjoying time and experiences (you can see more photos on my facebook and instagram pages). I hope you are all able to do the same. I'll post again when I land back in reality. Happy Summer!

Are you enjoying any great summer reads, or new experiences that might influence your writing?