Happy Monday...

Happy Monday, world.

Yep, Monday already!

Where’d the weekend go? Well, it just went really. It was busy. It was mostly fun. Both good things for a weekend to be.

This morning I took the guidelines for the Junior School Writing Competition into Breezy’s school. (You may recall I spoke to the kids during assembly on Friday about writing more interesting stories…)

On Friday night we decided the judging would be a team effort – me, Admin Fail One and Admin Bubbles. We also want the entries to be anonymous – for us. We know too many, and even though we would try very hard not to be biased, it just might turn out that way!

Fun.

Friday night was Fish and Chips at our place. We had a few drinks for the newly deceased – Milly the now stiff bunny. And generally had fun. I woke on Saturday morning to a hole in the back garden and no rabbit hutch in the living room… Milly was buried, the hutch cleaned and put in the shed. It has left quite a gap in the living room… one which we hope to fill with a large dog bed shortly.

Sunday I worked all afternoon. Which is how I spent most of this morning as well.

I also called the doc and requested a script for Squealer – let’s see if that gets written without any fuss! I hate leaving messages… the nurse never calls back – so this time I left a detailed message asking for the script. Hope it’s ready by lunchtime tomorrow, because that’s when I’m going to get it! Lol

At the moment I’m avoiding writing the next scene – I know too much about turning ventilators off and brain death to make this part of Soundbyte fun. But in all honesty – I don’t know that that is the outcome here at all.  (It looks very much like that from where I’m sitting… on the other side of the screen.) If it is… it changes everything. As it should and does.

Say hello – tell me about your weekend…

 and don't forget to pop over and get a copy of Torrent... it'll cost ya.. a whole 99 cents! :)

Thursday May 26, 2011

Good afternoon constable. (Now try saying… “Good afterble constanoon” – Go on! Why? Because it amuses me how many people cannot say that – seriously, it makes me laugh.)

No, that’s not my main reason for blogging this rainy Thursday afternoon. Nor is it to mention that I’ve lost about 5kg since leaving NZ in April. (But while we’re on that subject… I’m wearing tie-dyed orange jeans that I bought and tie-dyed only to discover they were two sizes too small, and now they fit – comfortably. And I’m extremely pleased about it. )

The reason I’ve decided to blog and not work for the next hour is to let y’all know that a collection of short Bytes is now available from Amazon Kindle. They’re stories about Ellie and they mostly cover things that happened between the first three books – all except for the last story which takes place after exacerbyte. The collection is available now on Kindle and is priced at a very affordable… US 99 cents.

Each story has its own cover within the collection.

I have to mention how pleased I am with the pictures on my Kindle – they are clear and just fabulous as black and whites in E-ink!! Of course if you have an iPhone, iPod or iPad you’ll see the photos in glorious color… which would be quite awesome. (And if you read Kindle on your PC, Laptop or Mac then you also have glorious color! LOL)

I will now go back to work. Been working on the 5^th Byte – Soundbyte – and there have been a few tricky scenes in the last two days… so regular breaks are the key. Or Ellie may well take me over completely!

I want the rain to stop before I have to walk to school this afternoon… gumboots won’t go with orange jeans… LOL, truthfully not much goes with orange jeans. (Certainly not my red jacket… maybe I can get away with wearing my purple one…?)

Tomorrow I am going to school for the afternoon – talking to kids at assembly about writing more interesting stories… we’re going to play a game with some pictures. Let’s hope I remember to print some! Lol, not taking laptop this time. Weather will probably be crap – laptop in the rain.. Noooo.

Think I might require a sandwich shortly.

Hope y’all are having a good day.

Go buy Torrent .. and get your friends to buy Torrent.  It’s a dollar!

Sunday and BIG surprise - no Rapture here

I know – shocking isn’t it? Seems that someone got it wrong again. Although I’m pretty sure the current volcanic carrying on in Iceland will be considered rapture worthy by someone!! Just let it go – accept it ain’t gonna happen and find something else to rave about.

This morning I read a story that made me laugh, a lot. I got to the end and discovered I wasn’t supposed to make comment – OMFG – I swear my head nearly exploded. I wanted to scream. So I commented about not being able to comment.

I know – but shit, it will drive me nuts if I can’t comment on this one story.

{Admins – do we or do we not know someone who takes the Blue Line to work?}

Apart from surviving the non-existent rapture and being unable to comment on a story… it’s been a fairly quiet day. I did get a ridiculous email which made me laugh and had both Action Man and I dumbfounded. There is no fathoming what goes on in some people’s minds. So I give up. The person in question can go wallow in a pit of misery I shall not be extending anything to pull her out again.

But yeah a quiet day.

An idea I had last night, did pop back up this morning, which indicates it’s a good one or at least one with potential. If I can just rouse myself to haul out a plot we’ll be well on our way to creating a NZ series.

Is the world ready for something set in Upper Hutt?

I doubt it.

But you are getting it, so brace yourselves.

I’ve run the idea by my admins – Admin One is for it. So, let’s just see if it’ll fly! (I hope it won’t plummet… but Kiwi’s are flightless birds so… could be a lot of plummeting and splatting going on!)

In other news… there is none.

Yep… that’s right.

Nothing.

How was your weekend???

It shouldn't be so hard...

In today’s blog we will discuss the seemingly impossible task of filling a form in correctly.


Yep, it can’t be done.

And yet I used to LOVE filling in forms.

I wonder if I ever have managed to do it correctly though… well of course I did, when the US State Department asked me if I was a terrorist or a spy, I managed to concentrate and tick NO. Actually, to be perfectly honest – it wasn’t easy, part of me wanted to tick YES just to see what would happen…
Today the form was relatively simple… no one wanted to know if I was a spy. (Whew! No temptation to – see what happens next…)

I had to fill in a dental enrollment form for Breezy.

Simple?

Fuck no.

It was full of stupid questions like “home phone number” – I’m supposed to know that? Ridiculous. I put down my cell, that one I do know. Last time the home phone rang I answered my cell anyway – well I don’t expect the damn phone on my desk to ring!
Doctor’s name and phone number? Oh please, as if anyone has ONE particular doctor any more… they’re almost all shared practices and it’s whoever is available… not enough room on form to write, Marko, Franz, Cathy, Ben, Kim, and Cheryl. As for the phone number, um, that’s on a magnet on the fridge… do I really have to go and find it? Surely dentists have a list of doctors’ practices on hand?

And why exactly would a school dentist need the doctor’s number? Don’t answer that, it’s called a rhetorical question. (Which means I don’t actually care enough to want an answer.)
My favorite question is ‘Ethnic origin’: I like to tick ‘other’ then say New Zealander. Because, that is not on the list… I know, where the fuck do we live??
And the question I really and truly screwed up: Names and ages of children in same family.
Seriously? How is that in the least bit to do with the kid in question??

Big Brother can go jump in the lake… they’ll never decipher my shocking hand writing and fully buggered up answers. I even managed to sign in the WRONG place.


On the grounds that today I seem too stupid to breath unaided I am not working… can you imagine?


Although had this bloody form asked about anything to do with death, maiming, and information gathering… I would have nailed it right off the bat.

This blog post was bought to you by bugs on a plane and Codral.

Looks like a good week...

Happy Tuesday!
I know what the blog says... it's wishful thinking. :)

Today is my first day home alone - the first day I've had home alone in almost two months. It's so nice! I forgot how nice.

My music playing as loud as I like whenever I feel like it.... I've felt like it ALL day.

Dinner cooking - lasagna, which I just made. Because I could without any interruptions or without having to work around anyone or anything. I'll re-heat it later, cos we all know lasagna benefits from re-heating as opposed to eating fresh.

I've worked for a few hours. (Oh so enjoyed that!!)

I've done mundane houseworky things.

I've even entertained... well, kinda. Dionne and Tim came for coffee after we went for a walk this morning. Kinda, because I don't exactly have to entertain them! :)

There's a good chance that the headache I've had for over a week will now fuck off. Things are getting back to normal. Action Man is at work. No doubt he's enjoying himself.

Shortly we will be hearing from GAP about a home visit, which will hopefully lead to a new four-legged family member. It's high time I had a dog walking next to me on my jaunts down the river path - and lying with me watching TV at night. We also think Squealer will benefit from having a dog in the house again. Of course Breezy is a reincarnation of my old yellow Lab, Jake - so we know she'll love having a dog around! :)
As for the cat, well she quite likes dogs. If she can tolerate a hunt-away puppy and the notorious little Jack... she'll be fine with a much more refined creature like a Greyhound. And we know Milly the ancient bunny cares not a jot about anything - as long as she has plenty of hay and fresh vegies. So much for the rabbit being old and it being too cold for her outside, 3 winters ago! She's now 7, and showing no sign of becoming pie anytime soon. Guess having an indoor hutch suits her!!

I suppose I should move - can't forget to pick up Breezy... don't forget the child...

:D

Hope you're all having a good week.

xx

Start me up.

It’s Sunday here in New Zealand - we’ve had torrential rain, wind, thunder and now sunshine – welcome to autumn, Wellington style.

I’m currently listening to an eclectic playlist (quite normal for me – if I’m not working.) this one is heavy on the Rolling Stones - they’ve always been a favorite of mine.
This morning I braved Backspace and actually read some of the competition comments – one in particular had me laughing, a lot. I can’t share it, in case someone who doesn’t know I wrote the particular story reads my blog. That would be kinda unfair. The stories are anonymous until judging is final.
(Admittedly, it would be pretty hard NOT to know it’s mine.)
Names were changed to protect the … hell, what was I protecting? My own anonymity, I guess. There is of course one person who knows full well who wrote it – he was there when the story first came into existence. And I bet he’s still laughing.
It’s actually only part of the story.
The rest of it was pulled out and the end re-written – I thought better of gutting someone on a doorstep… I know, not like me – but this was for something other than my own enjoyment. There were two versions originally – one that ended with a gutting, the other with the introduction of water sports. (Take that as you will.) Either way, the story exists as a cathartic entity – my way of dealing with someone unpleasant. It made me laugh. It was only ever meant to amuse me.

My Sharona… now that takes me back, to being smacked in the head at a concert by some retard’s elbow.

Yep, this is eclectic – Over the hills and far away, Gary Moore. Every time I hear it I feel like opening the historic WIP and actually writing a few a pages. Luckily (or not) I never quite manage to hold the enthusiasm past the end of the song.

Oh my, now it’s John Denver… anyone wanna guess which song? (Come on, you should know this… “…I hear her voice in the morning hour she calls me, the radio reminds me of my home far away… Country roads take me home to the place I belong…) And now we’re back with the Rolling Stones – Miss you.

Once this competition is done – I will let the story revert back to what it really is, and slide it back from whence it came.

Let’s finish this with… the Hollies, long cool woman.

And here is the complete play list :

Achy Breaky Heart –Billy Ray
Testify – Lorenza Ponce
Get over it –Eagles
I got you babe – Sonny and Cher
Start me up – Rolling Stones
Love will keep us alive – Eagles
My Sharona – The Knack
Over the hills and far away – Gary Moore
Take me home country road – John Denver
Miss you – Rolling Stones
Long cool woman – Hollies
Lay your love on me – Racey
Baby I’m a want you – Bread
She’s a rainbow – Rolling Stones
Ruby Tuesday – Rolling Stones
Some gave All – Billy Ray
You don’t have to say you love me – Elvis
Always on my mind – Elvis
Superman 14 – Kevin Costner and Modern West
Promised Land – Elvis
Paint in Black – Rolling Stones
Wild Horses – Rolling Stones
Let me be the one – Kevin Costner and Modern West
Casual Girl – Lorenza Ponce


If you haven't quite made it to Sunday yet - have a happy one. :)

I won't lose faith... well, maybe just a little?

I'm not entirely sure if the self-doubt writers live with is normal for other arts. I guess asking won't hurt...
meanwhile, I'm a writer. (I know, how cool!)

This didn't happen by accident or by wishful thinking or by waiting for life to land in my lap. It happened because I made it so. That's right, me. No one did it for me. All those rejections were addressed to me. (Likewise the acceptances.) What's more it never ends. Finishing a new book and sending it off to my publisher - it's not a guaranteed thing, it could be utter crap - therefore rejection is still on the table. I still have huge moments of panic once I hit send, and when I see emails bearing that piece or works title. That is how it is. I accept that. I embrace that. I trust my editor and my publisher to be honest and to kick my ass when required.

Now becoming a published writer, is no different to any other career - you can sit there and whine about it, or you can MAKE it happen. That is the bottom line. No one can find you the perfect job, if you don't get off your ass and put yourself out there.
(With writing, it's a tad tougher - the market you compete in is global after all, and it is a brutal industry - in fact if you're considering writing, you need your head examined!)

At the moment I'm reading Save the Cat! Strikes Back - why am I reading a book on screenwriting? Because I read a thread on Backspace that made sense to me. Because I'm a writer and I'm always looking to improve my craft (but in ways that work for me - I'm not about to sign up to any creative writing classes, thanks all the same, but I don't believe you can teach someone creative writing like that. Go ahead, run with that - it's my opinion, and I've yet to be convinced otherwise!).
Plus - I don't have the first clue how to write a screen play, and maybe I'd like to try.

To get back to my first totally insecure comment about self-doubt: It's always there. Always. If it wasn't, I doubt I would try as hard, enjoy this as much, or get such a buzz out of a new contract.

But - self doubt doesn't exist in my published work. That stunned me. I thought I would hold killerbyte in my hands and cringe as I came up with better ways of saying something - after the fact. That doesn't happen. Surprised the hell out of me!
It doesn't happen.
I can read my books and not want to change sentences around or add anything. They are what they are, and my writing is ever evolving.

That's it from me this morning. (Are you enjoying my 4:30am starts??)

We got it going on...

Tuesday May 10, 2011


Yeah, the blog says Monday – it like me prefers EDT. Let’s just go with that shall we?

I noticed something today, there aren’t too many places I can go now and just say what I think. Used to be my blog was that place. Lately I’ve been sneaking over to Ellie’s blog and using that. (No one really knows about her blog so it still feels safe.) Maybe that came out wrong? I don’t mean to say that I don’t feel safe on my own blog, I just mean… things have changed, especially in the last few months. And that maybe my ranting, rambling, and wild gesticulating about life is not appropriate? I know, I just flipped myself off! – What was I thinking?? If you don’t like it, don’t freaking read it.

But even so, I feel like I should write more about writing and so forth (like most other author blogs) but quite honestly there are enough really good blogs about writing out there… y’all don’t need another one from me. In saying that, I am more than happy to answer questions about writing, publishing and so forth – either privately or here on the blog. (If you have any, just holler!)

Possibly trying to curb myself to safe appropriate topics is simply impossible – I’m not that person. (Did you think otherwise? Really? Well, color me surprised!)

I’ve been home a week now. Doesn’t feel like a week. It’s been busy. Very busy.

No doubt some of you saw my earlier post on Flashbyte and the new contract? I think you’ll enjoy it when you eventually get to read it. I enjoyed writing it, very much.

I was looking to see if I had a log line… but if I do (and I’m pretty sure I do) it’ll be on my PC not laptop. So let me see if I can tell you what it’s about.

Flashbyte – well obviously it’s a _Byte series book.

Which means, it’s an Ellie Conway story.

It’s complicated.

Hmm, that’s not a very good description is it?

Flashbyte - in which a terrorist, a bank robber, a murderer, and a cold case twist the past into the present and leave an uncertain future.

I think that pretty much says it all, in a vague and weirdly wonderful way.

So it’s a got a little of all sorts and even some stunt fire. (As in flames… there is also a little bit of shooting, and some other fun stuff.)

Today the song that was wedged in my head the longest was “We got it going on.” – But I think that was only because every time my phone goes that’s what I hear. It could be a lot worse.

There is stuff going on – you’ll hear eventually, until then… have you read Exacerbyte yet??

If you have could you please pop by Amazon and leave a review?

Thank you in advance.

Oh and if you have a paperback and would like a signed bookplate – leave me a message!

And Action Man starts his new job next Tuesday! Woo hoo!!

I think that’s about it.

It could be Friday, but I'm not certain

Actually my computer says it's Friday and as I wouldn't let it change it's time and date while I was away, it's probably right.
Probably.

This week began in North America and ended in New Zealand. Hence there are still some time travel issues. For one I am waking at 3am and thinking I've slept in... I haven't. Whoops. Of course the other issue happens later ...

By midafternoon I'm knackered and in need of sleep.

Even staying up to a normal bedtime doesn't stop the EARLY mornings.

They've become productive early starts though. I have time to blog this morning because I've already done a full days work!

I do have news.

That's right, news.

This week I signed the contract for the 4th _Byte novel - FLASHBYTE. :) Big grins all round. We shall celebrate on Saturday night. Admins are excited with new contract. I have Dolcetto and Sryah chilling. Yes I know it's a red wine, but it's also a blend and one of the few reds that is happiest chilled! (So, No, I'm not a philistine when it comes to red wine, this one is a special red. And I don't mean it's retarded either.)

I am a pleased little author at the moment. Have a publisher who has faith in me and an editor who loves my new book. What more could I want? (Can you say TV/film deal? Yeah? me too... that'd be nice!)

Currently working on the 5th Byte. Soundbyte.
Also putting together a new series. You'll hear more about this later. (Much later probably)

Action Man has a job interview today. (This is awesomeness!)

So tell me what you've all been doing while I was away. - You must've done something I was gone for a month!!

While you think about it and leave me lovely comments I shall go back to my map... and figure out where the Unsub went.

Yes I am smiling, and no it's not something I care to share with the class. (It's got a lot to do with a German Restaurant in West Virginia and beer, one of those 'had to be there' moments.)

Sausgae anyone?

Wednesday or Tuesday?

It's a bit like that today.

I woke at 3am. My body insisted it was almost lunchtime and that I'd slept in. It's a tad confused. How can it be Wednesday - I left North America on Sunday, and got home early yesterday morning. It's just not right.
Kinda amusing though.

So right about now I am a bit tired. It's effectively zero dark thirty for me, and yet it isn't.

It's been a day that wafted in and out of real consciousness. Many many things circulating in my mind, some of which need action now, other things are happy to sit for a while. But they're there. Even the things that are happy to sit, are quietly making their presence felt.

And then there is my restless impatience - (usually directed at myself). I have no patience and I want to get things finished, sorted, signed, well - you know... I want things done. And currently I'm not exactly capable of getting it all done as quickly as I'd like (and to the standard I insist upon!).

I really just want to go to bed and sleep - but I know I'll wake before 3am if I sleep now!!

We're having a big dinner on Saturday night - am hoping that the Admins and I are back on deck by then.

To sum up the last month - fuc'n awesome.
Plans?
Yes.
Am I sharing?
No, not yet.

There is lots going on.

xxx