Monday morning chill in the South

There was a definite chill in the house this morning as I crept out of bed and headed to the kitchen to make the coffee. It felt good to wrap up in a throw as I watched the news and waited on the coffee to brew. My son actually wore a hoodie this morning. I love this weather. It will bring on the Fall transformation of beauty in the trees.

I’m working on several manuscripts. I can’t seem to stay put on one particular one. Hopefully this morning I can focus on just one. Hopefully my Christmas editions will be ready in the next couple of weeks.

How do you stay focused and away from the other characters and stories crowded your mind? Sometimes a deadline can put a wall of to the over crowding, but most of the time theses stories and characters just keep right on pushing their way through. Let’s just hope I can stay focused for the hour I have before going to the office.

Today’s question: Does anyone else have several manuscripts playing inside their head? What are you working on today?

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Falling for Fall

Fall is one of my favorite times of the year. This is the time of year that I feel like shedding my problems as the trees shed their leaves. I feel like it’s time to go dormant and rewaken refreshed in the Spring. I love the beauty of this time of the year. The many colors are the work of God’s hand and he really shows out this time of the year.

As the colors change I get inspired to write. As the air starts to get crisp I feel the need to express it. Soon a fire will crackle in the fireplace. I’ll curl up by the fire and type out my thoughts. As the days grow shorter and Christmas nears I get the excitement of a child. During Christmas I keep a smile on my face and a giggle in my throat.

Today I’m going to the Church to decorate with my fellow members for our annual Fall Festival. We will have games, food, a 64′ obstacle course and just plain out Christian fun. I get so excited. I’ve been getting my supplies together for a couple of weeks and as the time nears me heart swells with the excitement of the moment.

So go out today and enjoy the day. It’s a fleeting time we have on this earth, so enjoy every day…

As always, great writing and May God Bless You…

2nd Cup of Coffee and Cool Fall Morning

I just love this time of the year. It’s so cozy curled up in the corner of the couch with my throw and coffee. I feel invigorated. The leaves are on the verge of change and the air is so clean. It’s amazing what God has given us.

I am nursing my second cup of coffee as I type this post. Yes, I’m still on vacation, so no hurry to shower and get dressed. I actually typed 4000 words yesterday. It was a very productive day. I have my outline beside me now and am pumped about today’s word count. If you’re a writer you know what I mean. It’s fun when the story is just spilling from your mind to your fingertips. The only problem I have is I want to get to the happenings of chapters ahead of where I am. Funny thing about a story is it unfolds sometimes in a crazy order. I can see the last act so clearly and it guides me through the middle story which leads you up to the final words.

I’ve taken some advice from a fellow blogger and writer that has helped so much with this manuscript. I am so guilty of editing and proofing as I go. It’s a slow process when you do it that way. I’m bad about going back and rewriting parts or correcting spelling or grammer. As she said in her post, don’t do that until the first draft is complete. It does hinder your rhythm as you work. If you stop and go several times your brain gets in a fog. I typed yesterday continuously and refused to go back and edit even though at times I wanted to sooooooo bad.

How do you write? What’s the pet peeve of your writing? If you have a finished piece of work and need some help with the polishing, go to the Horseshoe Publishing tab at the top of my page and check out our polishing services. Your hard work needs to be out there, so get it polished and shiny and ready for the public to ooh and awe over it.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

It’s Spring, here comes the weather…

Well, living in the South you kind of get used to the crazy weather. We had possible tornado’s around our area yesterday evening. Got to spend some time at my brother’s house as he has a storm area in his basement. Thank goodness he lives next door. Luckily we didn’t have any damage, but several in our County did have damage. It was bad enough that school was canceled for today which made my son extremely happy.

Here is 5 things I love about Spring and 5 I don’t

1: I love the budding of the trees and the rebirth of everything.

2: I love the flowers and planting my flower beds.

3: The feeling in the air is so serene and it inspires me to write which is a good thing.

4: I love to watch a Spring rain with the sun dancing through as rainbows appear in the sky.

5: I love the nice temps as it can get pretty warm here as Summer approaches.

Now what I don’t like

6: Tornado’s which seem to plague us here in the Spring.

7: Pollen oh I don’t like the pollen.

8: Bees and snakes start coming back out. Not a big fan.

9: Spring brings on the end of tax season and my busiest time in the office.

10: It means that we didn’t get any snow and have to wait until next year. I love the snow and it’s always a waiting game to see if we’re going to be graced with it’s pristine beauty.

I have to admit that my two favorite times of the year are Spring and Fall when the air is just warm enough to lose the coat but still cool enough where you enjoy the fresh air. Especially no air pollution until the warmer weather hit.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You!

The mind of a writer!

The road we take as a writer is not always beautiful and lyrical. Most of the time it’s frustrating, nail biting, and down right scary. As I sit and watch the light mist fall outside my den window, I ponder what makes a good writer, what makes a bad writer?

The mind of a writer takes on several layers. A writer can swing from one emotion to another rapidly. It’s funny how quickly things change in the mind of a writer. I know personally I have had an idea about how a book would go and suddenly halfway through it takes a different turn. Sometimes I sit back and say “Wow, didn’t see that one coming” then I laugh to myself, why would I say that knowing it came from my own mind. Sometimes I think I have two brains, one the inner writer and two the outer person.

As a writer you usually see a story out of the simplest thing. I picked up a beautiful bright yellow leaf and looked at it. My mind exploding with possibilities. I traced the veins with my brain, suddenly thinking about a story line about the road less taken or maybe even a story line of the winding roads of life. Yep I got all that from a leaf.

Last night I was helping my son feed the dogs and he picked up a bowl outside and grabbed a slug. He immediately said, “Gross!” I immediately thought of a story about a person being a complete slug and how they pulled themselves out. This being thought of as I showed my son what happens to slugs as salt is sprinkled on them. Now that’s scary.

At Christmas time I get nostalgic and that brings on a wave of new writing possibilities in my mind. I can’t seem to stay on the same piece of work, I’m constantly swinging from one to the other. My mind saying you’ve got to do this, not that.

Don’t get me started on how music effects my writing. I have a long writing playlist. I use this while writing. It inspires me. It ranges from classical, country, classic rock, love, and just plain crazy. That might be my next blog post, the playlist of a writer.

Well, I’m through rambling. Aren’t you glad? As always good writing and if it comes through your head, write it down immediately and spread it into a story. You never know. May God bless and keep you.

Good Wednesday Morning!

It is a beautiful Georgia morning. The air has a slight crispness to it. As I sit here with the windows open, the cool breeze comes softly across me. I sip my coffee and have my laptop in my lap, just enjoying the morning. I can hear the birds chirping in the trees as if agreeing with me.

Of course I know that I need to get up and get ready for my day, but I just put it to the back of my mind. Life is so short and we run around all willy nilly not stopping to smell the roses or feel the breeze on our face. Why? If we miss life’s precious moments what have we accomplished?

I made a decision the first of the year to start stopping and smelling the roses. Sometimes it gets me behind on projects but I know the fact is I am getting older and missing out on many things. I have spent the last twenty odd years building my accounting practice and working constantly. I have missed out on so much that the sweet side of life has to offer. Well I have been doing more for myself.

One of the main things is publishing my books and writing in my spare time. It has been so refreshing and revealing to me. I did not realize how much I had missed. I actually feel better physically and mentally. It is as if a weight has been lifted from my shoulders.

Well, try it yourself. Just stop and take a deep, cleansing breath. See if you don’t feel a little better. As always good writing and May God Bless You!

Tax Season over tomorrow!!!

Well, another tax season is coming to a close. As I sit here in my office putting the finishing touches on yet another procrastinators return I wonder “why do I do this every year?” I guess because I love accounting. There is something about working with numbers and solving problems that just pulls me in. I do wish the IRS would get a handle on how they want to handle Accountants. They are constantly changing things and every year my tax books get thicker and thicker. It can get a little hectic around the office.

I guess that’s why I’m enjoying writing so much. I get to lose myself in another world for a little while every day. Well almost every day. Sometimes I can’t wait to get lost in another person’s life. I will be sitting at my desk figuring out plots and what will happen next. It’s so sad the life and mind (or lack of) of a writer. We are always churning out a story from everything we see. I can see someone on the street that is intriguing and BAM! a story comes to mind. I know, I have a problem, but if it publishes and sells books…

I hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday evening, or what’s left of it. Tomorrow it is back to school for my son. He has been out on Fall break. Man that clock is going to be terrible sounding at six in the morning. Oh well, life goes on. Good writing and My God Bless you tonight!

Good Morning!

Good morning to all bloggers. Hope all is well with the world around you. It is our first crisp morning here in Georgia. So invigorating. I actually had chill bumps while waiting on the bus with my son. He was the smart one, he had on his hoodie.

I excitedly came back in the house smelling the delicious aroma of fresh brewed coffee. As my followers are well aware, I have got to have my morning coffee. It just tastes better when you are cold. I started thinking about the upcoming colder weather and start having warm, fuzzy feelings about the start of fire building season. By March I am totally over the warm,fuzzy feeling and into the I can’t handle wood on the floor and hauling endless loads to the porch, but for now am excited.

I look forward to the days of curling up in front of the fireplace with my laptop or a good book. I am smiling just imagining the work I will get done this winter, especially now that I am publishing my work. I am also happy today reeling from some really wonderful reviews and an upswing in sales since all my books are now available at Barnes & Noble, Apple, Sony, Kobo, and Diesel to name a few. So exciting this craft that we do. It brings a whole new meaning to “telling the story”. So to all my writer friends good writing and to all my reader friends good reading!

Crisp pre-fall Morning in Georgia!

Well, it is not quite fall here in Georgia, but this morning was a welcome sneak peak. We actually had a cool, crisp morning. The bird’s were chirping happily as my son and I walked to the end of the driveway to wait on the bus. I was regretting the fact that I had on a short sleeve t-shirt. Since I have been sick this weekend with sinus or cold or whatever the heck has been in my head, it was nice to get out in the fresh air.

It made me think of fairs, country festivals, hot boiled peanuts and apples. If you are not from the south, you may not think of these things, but here in the south, that is what it reminds me of.

The feel of the air inspired me to work on my book in progress before I go to the office. It made me feel refreshed, or as refreshed as I can feel with a stopped up nose and sneaky little aggravating cough. Oh, well, a writer has to move forward because every spare minute not used to finish the manuscript is a wasted minute. I have a goal and that goal has not been met and closing in fast.

So, have a wonderful Monday! Yeah, I know it is Monday, but only five days until next weekend…