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Cousins Rock!
I’m home from the Cousins Reunion in the hills. We rented a giant log home (seriously! 5 bedrooms, 5.5 baths, a 10-butt kitchen–really giant!), set among the hills and forests in the southern part of our state. Twenty of us gathered to celebrate being family and to share pictures, memories, and lots of food, wine, and love. I met ten new cousins and reunited with nine others. We hugged, laughed, cried, and told tales on one another and on our parents and grandparents. We started the celebration by finding our rooms and settling in. Then the fun began with a snacks and dessert buffet (Thanks Cousin Mags, for 3 cheesecakes,…
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Cousins Reunion…
…starts today. Twenty-one of us have rented two log lodges down in the hills, and we are looking forward three days of fun and fellowship…and of course, food and wine. There will be lots sharing of family history and I’m excited to hear what everyone else remembers from tales they heard in their childhoods. Emails have been flying all over cyberspace as we’ve planned and gotten ready, so everyone is completely jacked up. I got to start the reunion early by having two of my cousins stay with me last night before we head south today–and what a treat it’s been to catch up and share stories late into the…
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Guest Blogging Today…
…at the Bettyverse. A particularly significant topic to me this week because I’m preparing to head south for a family reunion that includes meeting cousins I’ve never met before as well as reuniting with loved ones. Come join the conversation…or if you choose not to comment on the website, please tell me your heirloom story here. Love to hear from you.
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Is It Just Me…
…or do we care less about housework as we get older? Once upon a time, Mondays and Tuesdays were housecleaning days at my home. I worked my rather round ass off scrubbing floors and bathrooms, vacuuming, dusting, doing laundry…the list was truly two full days of cleaning. And at least twice a year, everything got removed from my kitchen cupboards and my china hutch and was washed and put back away, all shiny clean. I reorganized closets at least four times a year, washed windows every spring and fall, and even got dust bunnies out from under the shelves in the garage. But things have changed. In the last few…
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Revisions are done…
…maybe. So here’s the weird part about being a writer, well one of the weird parts. I’m never done. I buttoned up the revisions on the first novel last night, dealt with my crit partner’s comments and edits and worked out the parts that still needed tweaking. When I was done, I put all the chapters together into a manuscript file and saved it. Then I sent it to my Kindle so I could read it again in book form. Six pages into Chapter 1, I found a POV (Point of View) glitch that neither of us caught. Um…probably a safe bet that my heroine is not going to think…
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Guest Blogging…
…at the Bettyverse today. I’m talking about a really embarrassing moment in my life–come join the fun! I’d love to hear about your most embarrassing moment if you’re brave enough to share. See ya there!
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Of Furniture and Decorating…
I’m no decorator, I have to admit that right off. But when we bought our lake cottage, I had a clear vision of what I wanted it to be. “Beachy” was the word I kept using to describe the style I was going for. I wanted lake cottage casual, beachy fun, you know…comfortable furniture, laying around looking like it doesn’t care. Gracious friends and family all helped supply us with things for the new place–dishes, pots and pans, canisters, sheets and towels. We were literally starting from ground zero, so we accepted any and all contributions to the cause. We also discovered the Wal-Mart home store. Wow! Husband swears the…
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Revisions and Revelations
I’m working on revisions to my first novel. My crit partner Sandy and I have gotten through the first five chapters and ironically, there are more things to fix/revise that either of us imagined. Not dramatically changing the story line at all, but rather tightening up language, creating more tension between my characters, just making it better. My goal is to have it ready to resend to my agent by the end of next week so she can send it out to some other publishers. What I’m learning about my writing is that I may not actually be a straight category romance writer. I thought that was what I wrote,…
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Back In the Saddle…
I’m back from my vacation with the Sisters, which was very nice. I got to see Son and DIL and even spend time with Lily, my granddog. I tasted a lot of good wine; ate at several great restaurants, including Federicos Tapas and Wine Bar, where I learned about ceviche, sea bass, and other wonderful tidbits. I went to a play at Cal Shakes; and I got to lay around a pool and read for pleasure, which was delicious! But now, I’m back home and back to work. While I was on vacation, I got a rejection on my first novel–the one that is my heart. (Note to self, don’t…
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Guest blogging…
…on the Bettyverse today. Come by and join the discussion about siblings. Good fun!