Wow, I did something this morning that I haven’t done in more years than I can remember—I slept in. Now by “in,” I mean 9 a.m., but when my habit is to rise a little before 6, have breakfast with Husband, make his lunch, send him out the door, and be at my worktable by about 7:30, this is big. I was up late last night editing and when the alarm went off this morning, I simply couldn’t face the day yet. So I stayed in bed, snoozed for a bit longer, and woke up more ready to start back in on work. Coffee in hand, I’m getting back into…

Today, I’m sending you to StoryWonk, the fabulous podcasts of writers, Lani Diane Rich and Alastair Stephens. They talk daily about stories, the craft of writing, and the life of a writer. They also offer seminars and classes on writing. Every so often they have guests, but mostly it’s the two of them, sharing insights and ideas about writing. Even if you aren’t a writer, go for the fun chemistry between these two…and for Alastair’s Scottish accent… And on a completely different note, I’ve been using this website in my struggle to get my body back into shape: LIVESTRONG. It’s a great place to track food and exercise–counts calories for…

I come from a family of voracious readers. I started reading at age four, thanks to my sisters who were both in school. They played “school” after school each day and I was their student, so learning to read early was the natural result of that. Also, Mom read aloud to us constantly and was a big reader herself. Honestly, only my sister PJ rivals Mom’s ability to be so completely absorbed in a book that she can read anywhere, anytime, while anything at all is going on around her. I once saw PJ read a book in the middle of a chaotic, crowded airport with Kate and I on…

…is at the Bettyverse today! Come on over! We’re talking about movies and how lines from movies have become a part of our culture’s vernacular. Do you love movies? Do you quote lines from your favorite films? Talk to us!

Okay, so yes, I’m a world-class worrier. But I only worry about important stuff, like whether or not  the voices in my head who become novels might suddenly stop talking to me or that no one will buy my book when it launches in February or that they will buy it, but think it’s truly stupid or that I’m going to have heart attack while I’m driving…see? Only really important stuff. The book fears are more real right now because I signed my contract with the publisher on Tuesday. So, now it’s really gonna happen–I’m going to be published. So now, I get to perseverate over copyedits, launch, promotion, sales…a…