Tag Archives: Reading

I Can’t Resist a Craft Show

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Coldstream Pottery

Coldstream Pottery

 

This past weekend saw my Mom and I schlepping our hinnies down the aisles of the annual Best To You Arts and Craft Sale. Three and half hours later we were tired, hungry, and peopled out. But also productive. I was on a mission and I think I scored some pretty good stuff. I’d much rather shop for Christmas gifts at a craft show then the mall despite the noise and the crowds.

But you always have to get a little something for yourself, as a reward for…something. Things I always watch for:

Pottery mugs with a hint of blue in them.

I collect handcrafted Christmas tree ornaments.

My special find were wooden vintage picture postcards from Cedar Mountain Studios. I thought they would make a wonderful future giveaway.

Maybe you’re not a craft sale junkie. Maybe you’re a crafter? Or DIYer? Maybe you just like to look at crafts others have made on Pinterest? Me too. You can find me there too!

Today is also the first day of my writing group, The Saskatchewan Romance Writers, November Writing Challenge. Yay! Can’t wait to finish this story. We report our ups and downs on Facebook. We cheer each other on to whatever goal we’ve chosen. Mine is a 1000 words a day until the story is finished. I’m about two/thirds of the way through and struggling away at what is the hardest part of any story to write, for me anyway. The time where some things are wrapped up, some things are only started to be revealed, and your stringing others out. The hero and heroine are indulging in their need for each other and navigating new found feelings blissfully unaware of what’s coming at them.

Which means I’m going to need some new music. So after as a reward for 1000 words written I’ll be heading to iTunes to see what inspires me for tomorrow and the day after. Right now I’m listening to Aaron Lines and The Lights of My Hometown. It’s working my fictional small prairie town of Aspen Lake is calling and scenes need to be written.

Yep, I love what I do.

Happy writing! If you’re not writing, then happy reading! If it’s neither of those two, then press on and enjoy the hell out of whatever it is you’re doing! And remember to reward yourself and add to your precious collections when you’re able.

 

Hump Day Confessions

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 Photo of the Week

Calgary Zoo 2013“Just smile and wave, boys. Smile and wave…” Skipper, Madagascar

Confession of the Week

I have a thing about the names for animal groupings. I think it’s the writer in me always looking for different ways to look at and add description. Or the fact I’m a word geek.

Penguins live in large groups, and there are several different names for these groups.  When they group together on land, they are known as a waddle.  When the group is nesting, they are called a rookery.  When the group of penguins is found in the water, they are known as a raft.  On certain occasions, baby penguins form a group inside the larger group, which is known as a creche (kresh).

There’s something about describing a group of men in a ballroom and referring to them as a waddle. If you’re in the mood to indulge your curiosity or your geekiness check out Animal Congregations, Or What Do You Call a Group Of…

Favorite Post of the Week

I Love Men – Thought Catalog From Tumblr. I loved this post and her wonderful and thoughtful description.

On The Reading Front

Currently: Writing 21st Century Fiction by Donald Maass

Just Finished Reading: Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts

On Cue: The Hitwoman Gets Lucky by JB Lynn

Great Book Quote

“He looked like every glossy frat boy in every nerd movie ever made, like every popular town boy who’d ever looked right through her in high school, like every rotten rich kid who’d ever belonged where she hadn’t.” Jennifer Crusie, Welcome to Temptation

Not a word about his chiseled jaw or piercing blue eyes but you still get the picture. Love it.

How about you? Anything to confess? Read a great book? What to share a link?

Reading Therapy

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I participated in a reading last week at a lovely small town Saskatchewan library along with a friend of mine, Annette Bower. I read from my romantic suspense, Backlash, and she read from her newly published e-book, Moving On: A Prairie Romance. An old converted school house with original tin ceilings and hardwood floors, it contained a small library and an art gallery. We read in a cosy room in front of a beautiful mural created by young local artists to fifteen or twenty interested attendees.

I had a very entertaining conversation with an older woman who hadn’t read a book of fiction since high school. It’s true. Apparently, it’s possible to go fifty or sixty years without reading a book. I’m sure she’s enjoyed many other creative pursuits, but still…

I thought about all those times I’ve read books to save my sanity. Like recently, when I found myself awake at 2:00 am three or four nights in a row because I was coughing and couldn’t sleep. Tucked up in bed, propped up against a mound of pillows, Vicks Vapor Rub smeared on my chest, waiting for the cough medicine to kick in, I poured through four books.

On those bi-monthly weekend Greyhound bus rides from Regina to Saskatoon to visit my now husband in my twenties. Airports, hotel rooms, doctor’s offices. What do people do in these places if they aren’t reading? Okay, excluding hotel rooms!

On our way home from the reading we talked about creative ways to promote ereaders and ebooks. Someone mentioned their niece reading on her ereader while breastfeeding her baby. Oh, how I wished I’d had one way back when to pass those long hours.

It’s been a long day and the next one promising to be just as long. What do you do? You pick up a book and allow the story to sweep you away. There’s nothing quite like immersing yourself in a great book. I’ll even take a not-so-great book over no book. I’ve used books to soothe away teenage angst. I remember once, shortly after moving away from home for the first time at eighteen, a group of girlfriends got together one night to watch the movie: Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I read an entire Harlequin romance once I returned home to my dark, little, very empty house. I don’t remember the name of the story, but it saved my sanity that night.

When has reading saved your sanity?

I hope you check out my friend, Annette Bower and her new release, Moving On – A Prairie Romance.

Moving On-A Prairie Romance

Anna is a mysterious woman that has just moved to Regina Beach. The residents of the small town know everyone’s business and they are very interested in discovering Anna’s secrets. Nick was a Sergeant in the Canadian Army, doing active duty until a horrific accident sent him home to recover. He helps Anna feel safe and comfortable in her new environment, just as he has always done for his men in strange, dangerous places. Meanwhile, he focuses on preparing for his future physical endurance test to prove that he is capable of returning to active duty.

Anna doesn’t talk about her past, and Nick doesn’t talk about his future therefore she is shocked to discover that his greatest wish is to return to active duty. She won’t love a man who may die on the job again. Intellectually, she knows that all life cycles end, but emotionally, she doesn’t know if she has the strength to support Nick.