Switching men

Revisions for the online read are done, dusted, and back with my editor. Will keep you posted.
So tonight, I'm switching from this man

to this one.

Remember Bryce? The hero in 'The Dating Dilemma'? Has been 3 months since I handed in this book and now the revisions have arrived, will be like looking at the book with fresh eyes.

Not a lot to do, but enough to change a few scenes here and there.

So the work begins...

(speaking of Daniel MacPherson, Dancing with the Stars new season started Sunday night. Alas, not a hottie in sight. I miss Paul Licuria and his bare chest...)

Refilling the well

Took kidlet to a bowling party on the weekend.
Great fun!

I've only been once before, with a bunch of elderly patients while doing a community health rotation in my final year at uni and remember I loved it then too.

Got me thinking...
I've been trying to refill the well lately, mainly by reading loads of books, especially by authors I haven't tried before (Lisa Gardner rocks! If you haven't read her, do. Will blog about that later this week.)
But I want to start trying different things and I reckon ten pin bowling is going to be one of them. Can't wait to do it as a family.

When hubby rang, told him my plans, and is first comment is 'good, I'll buy you a bowling ball for your birthday'. My reply? 'No way, Homer.'
Haven't watched 'The Simpsons' in years but I vaguely remember that episode :)

What do you do to refill the well?

Need a boost?

I finished the revisions for the online read last night.

Some of the kudos goes to this.

Boost bars are addictive. I haven't had one in ages for that very reason.

But with my energy levels low (after staying up the previous night reading until 1am, something I never do) I really didn't expect to get a lot done last night.

Instead, I finished the revisions!
And ate 2 bars.
Bad for the waistline, good for productivity.

What keeps you going when energy sags?

The benefit of walking away

I'm going to be a busy girl.

Two lots of revisions lobbed in my inbox yesterday: one for the Harlequin Romance I handed in a few months ago (nothing too major, thank goodness) and tweaks for the online read.

Mostly minor stuff I can fix quickly, but I did have to put my thinking cap on for the hero, Harrison.
His conflict needs to be deepened and I now know what I'm going to do, but why is it when that revision letter first hits, it all seems so daunting?
Do other writers find that?

It's the same every time for me. I look at it, I read it, I try to absorb it but it always bamboozles me.

My trick is to walk away, leave it, come back and print it out, then get my trusty pen and paper and start jotting down the main points I need to work on.
After this process, I finally feel calm and ready to tackle them.

What works for you?

Ooh la la!

One of my favourite books, THE BOSS'S BEDROOM AGENDA, is out in Italy and France this month.

Aren't those covers something?

The power of one word

As writers, we know the power of words.

So picture this.

Kidlet went first at the dentist, got the all clear.

I sit in chair, feeling rather nervous but trying not to look it for his sake.

Sunglasses on, drool bib on, spotlight on, chair tilts back, dentist starts poking.

I had Xrays during check up last year, so won't need them again until next year, she says.

Then the next words out of her mouth was something along the lines of '318 molar...extraction.'

I froze (like I wasn't already stiff with fear.) My eyes widened. I wanted to bolt.

While she casually continues her examination, chatting about Michael Jackson and some dish she made for dinner and other inane things.

Extraction...echoed through my head as I tried not to wince.

The good news? My teeth were fine, no fillings required (though the clean was painful!)

Bad news? My upper right wisdom tooth will have to be extracted in the not too distant future.

That's ok, I can handle it, especially the 'future' part.

For now, I'm smiling like this little guy.

Until the next time...

Gritting teeth

Actually, I'm trying not to grit my teeth, for the simple fact I'm off to the dentist today.

I'm not a fan of dentists.
Nothing against them personally, I've just never liked going.
Which is why I didn't go to one for about 20 years.
Crazy, huh?

When I did go, wasn't too bad. I had to have 5 fillings, about one for every four years, so coped with that.
Swore I wouldn't be so silly again.

Only left it 3 years...went last year, sure I'd need work and nada!

So I've bitten the bullet (gently, don't want to chip any teeth!) Going today, with kidlet, which means I have to be brave and put on a happy face.

Feeling a bit lightheaded just thinking about it...no! Snap out of it! There's nothing wrong with person poking into mouth with sharp, pointy thing guaranteed to make holes where there weren't any before.

Yeah, I know, I'm totally silly when it comes to dentists.
Wish me luck!