Well, hello again. Welcome back. Grab a cup of coffee and set yourself down a spell.
In the writing sphere, I finished the pretty pink, line by line edits on Sleeping Ugly on Friday, as scheduled (which felt like a major win for me lately - hitting a deadline). Next up, the deep content suggestions my editor made. And some tweaking of my own. Still on target for having this ready no later than Wednesday. I'm looking at an August 29th release date.
I'm currently working with my cover artist for SU's cover. We've got some good ideas and a cool cover model picked out. I'm sure she'll make it awesome.
I read 7 books last week, too. Crankin' and spankin'. And no DNFs. Yay.
And I got a boatload of work from pay-job. I'll have that done by Monday morning.
On the activity front, I did 5 out of 7 days (6 if you count watering the gardens as something active). Still no more weight lost. But shot day is Tuesday, so fingers crossed that helps.
We're still only seeing one fawn. Little Prince has two almost solid stripes of spots down either side of his neck, so it's easy to confirm that every time we glimpse a fawn, it's him. I picked up another water pan for the deer. It's been so hot and so dry they're chugging the water down and we have to fill the one pan we had three times a day. So, I got another one. They're still getting used to the newness in the yard, but Little Prince wet right to it and drank his fill. The others will get there, too.
This weather is crapping out my gardens, even with the every-other-day watering I'm doing. Rain! We need Raaiinn! We had thunderstorms roll through yesterday evening and not a freakin' drop. Bleh. It's supposed to get a tad cooler next week, so there's that. Too little too late probably. =o\
Well, that's all from me, folks. What's up with you?
Sunday, July 15, 2018
Saturday, July 14, 2018
Saturday Reading Wrap-Up 7/14/18
It was a big reading week for me last week. Here's what happened:
45) Off Leash (Freelance Familiars #1) by Daniel Potter and Marianne Fox (7/13/18) - Paranormal* - 5 stars. New to me, but not underappreciated. Thank goodness.
Review: "Different. Strange. Fun. And totally awesome. I really enjoyed reading this story. Full of twists and snark and humor, but not total fluff. I picked this up as a free deal the other day, but I'm buying the next one. I'm hooked."
Note: The next books are $4.99 each. I'm not quite budgeted to shell out $5 or $10 for books right now. I'll wait and see if the price drops any time soon. If not, maybe I'll buy them next month.
44) Die Like a Dog by Brett Halliday (7/11/18) - Hard-boiled Crime - 5 stars. Not new to me or anywhere else. Doesn't have a lot of reviews on Goodreads, but it was published in 1960, so I'm not surprised.
Review: "Ooo, I do love hard-boiled crime novels! This one doesn't disappoint. Mike Shayne solves the case, saves the girl, and catches the bad guys. Without angst or apology. So good."
43) Murder on Tyneside by Eileen Thornton (7/10/18) - Mystery* - 4 stars. New to me, but not really underappreciated as I see it. No review. Not a bad book, but it didn't excite me enough to review it.
42) Night Fall by Silver James (7/9/18) - Paranormal Romance* - 5 stars. Definitely not new to me and could be way more appreciated.
Review: "Started it this morning and was finished by lunch. I couldn't put it down. So good. And I couldn't believe it when Shy did that to Digger, and they didn't kill her. OMG. So not expecting that. But it all works out in the end. Yay!
Warning, though, there are some super spicy bits and some cringe-worthy language, but hey, these guys are bikers. And they're Wolves. If you're looking for nice and fluffy, this ain't it."
41) Jade Star by Cedar Sanderson (7/8/18) - SF novella* - 5 stars. Not new to me, and kind of underappreciated.
Review: "Excellent little novella. I loved Jade so much. So much awesome packed into such a small story. Now I need to go find the series this is Book 0 of.
And no, I am no relation to Ms. Sanderson."
40) The Unknown Twin by Kathryn Shay (7/8/18) - Romance - 4 stars. New to me, but not underappreciated. No review. Not a bad book, but it didn't excite me enough to review it.
39) Magic's Child by DJ Salisbury (7/7/18) - Fantasy - 5 stars. Not new to me, but still seriously underappreciated.
Review: "Perfect end to a most excellent series. All the feels were there - happy, sad, excited, thrilled, angry, surprised - and Ms. Salisbury tied it all up into a mostly happy ending. (No spoilers. I hate spoilers. But wait'll you see who the Mindbender is. Shocker. Totally.) I've got the first book of the next series waiting for me on my Kindle, but I'm going to have to wait for the feelings to die down a bit before I jump into that one."
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I finished my round of edits for Sleeping Ugly last night and wasn't prepared to dive back in for another pass then, so I started Term Limits by Vince Flynn. So far, so good.
What about you? Any new books to talk about?
45) Off Leash (Freelance Familiars #1) by Daniel Potter and Marianne Fox (7/13/18) - Paranormal* - 5 stars. New to me, but not underappreciated. Thank goodness.
Review: "Different. Strange. Fun. And totally awesome. I really enjoyed reading this story. Full of twists and snark and humor, but not total fluff. I picked this up as a free deal the other day, but I'm buying the next one. I'm hooked."
Note: The next books are $4.99 each. I'm not quite budgeted to shell out $5 or $10 for books right now. I'll wait and see if the price drops any time soon. If not, maybe I'll buy them next month.
44) Die Like a Dog by Brett Halliday (7/11/18) - Hard-boiled Crime - 5 stars. Not new to me or anywhere else. Doesn't have a lot of reviews on Goodreads, but it was published in 1960, so I'm not surprised.
Review: "Ooo, I do love hard-boiled crime novels! This one doesn't disappoint. Mike Shayne solves the case, saves the girl, and catches the bad guys. Without angst or apology. So good."
43) Murder on Tyneside by Eileen Thornton (7/10/18) - Mystery* - 4 stars. New to me, but not really underappreciated as I see it. No review. Not a bad book, but it didn't excite me enough to review it.
42) Night Fall by Silver James (7/9/18) - Paranormal Romance* - 5 stars. Definitely not new to me and could be way more appreciated.
Review: "Started it this morning and was finished by lunch. I couldn't put it down. So good. And I couldn't believe it when Shy did that to Digger, and they didn't kill her. OMG. So not expecting that. But it all works out in the end. Yay!
Warning, though, there are some super spicy bits and some cringe-worthy language, but hey, these guys are bikers. And they're Wolves. If you're looking for nice and fluffy, this ain't it."
41) Jade Star by Cedar Sanderson (7/8/18) - SF novella* - 5 stars. Not new to me, and kind of underappreciated.
Review: "Excellent little novella. I loved Jade so much. So much awesome packed into such a small story. Now I need to go find the series this is Book 0 of.
And no, I am no relation to Ms. Sanderson."
40) The Unknown Twin by Kathryn Shay (7/8/18) - Romance - 4 stars. New to me, but not underappreciated. No review. Not a bad book, but it didn't excite me enough to review it.
39) Magic's Child by DJ Salisbury (7/7/18) - Fantasy - 5 stars. Not new to me, but still seriously underappreciated.
Review: "Perfect end to a most excellent series. All the feels were there - happy, sad, excited, thrilled, angry, surprised - and Ms. Salisbury tied it all up into a mostly happy ending. (No spoilers. I hate spoilers. But wait'll you see who the Mindbender is. Shocker. Totally.) I've got the first book of the next series waiting for me on my Kindle, but I'm going to have to wait for the feelings to die down a bit before I jump into that one."
--------
I finished my round of edits for Sleeping Ugly last night and wasn't prepared to dive back in for another pass then, so I started Term Limits by Vince Flynn. So far, so good.
What about you? Any new books to talk about?
Thursday, July 12, 2018
Thursday This n That
I can't believe it's Thursday already. Where did the rest of the week go?
I'm loving this PD lip sync battle thing. The one where the officers are lip syncing the 'Bohemian Rhapsody' scene from Wayne's World kills me. The one from Norfolk, VA is awesome. The one from some little town here in MO is funny, but has the worst lip syncing I've ever seen. LOL. I think it's good to see them letting off steam. It's one hell of a stressful, dangerous job. And =op to the naysayers.
We have a pair of crows that hatched out three chicks this season. We know because the three fledglings are following their poor parents around making the most ungodly racket, demanding to be fed. They're kinda cute.
We got rain on Tuesday and I was cackling like a madwoman. This is what happens when it doesn't rain for too long a time. I went out on the porch to enjoy the downpour and I almost stepped out onto the concrete pad, but then big thunder. Nope nope nope. I want to enjoy the rain, but I do not want to fry for it.
I got a boatload of work from pay-job yesterday. And I have a Wednesday deadline. This should be fun. Luckily, I'm between books reading-wise right now.
Yesterday's bird of the day was the Kirtland's Warbler. They're endangered, but you know, I have no sympathy for them. I mean, they're cute and all, but their breeding area is soooo specific (one little area in the upper part of the lower peninsula of Michigan and only in certain trees there) that their evolutionary track leads to a brick wall. They need to be more like the coyote and the starling. If you can exist anywhere, your species' existence is more likely to continue.
Okay, that's it for me. Gotta get to work. (I wrote this last night, which meant editing, but you reading it this morning means spreadsheets. Either way, I'm working.) Ta ta for now.
I'm loving this PD lip sync battle thing. The one where the officers are lip syncing the 'Bohemian Rhapsody' scene from Wayne's World kills me. The one from Norfolk, VA is awesome. The one from some little town here in MO is funny, but has the worst lip syncing I've ever seen. LOL. I think it's good to see them letting off steam. It's one hell of a stressful, dangerous job. And =op to the naysayers.
We have a pair of crows that hatched out three chicks this season. We know because the three fledglings are following their poor parents around making the most ungodly racket, demanding to be fed. They're kinda cute.
We got rain on Tuesday and I was cackling like a madwoman. This is what happens when it doesn't rain for too long a time. I went out on the porch to enjoy the downpour and I almost stepped out onto the concrete pad, but then big thunder. Nope nope nope. I want to enjoy the rain, but I do not want to fry for it.
I got a boatload of work from pay-job yesterday. And I have a Wednesday deadline. This should be fun. Luckily, I'm between books reading-wise right now.
Yesterday's bird of the day was the Kirtland's Warbler. They're endangered, but you know, I have no sympathy for them. I mean, they're cute and all, but their breeding area is soooo specific (one little area in the upper part of the lower peninsula of Michigan and only in certain trees there) that their evolutionary track leads to a brick wall. They need to be more like the coyote and the starling. If you can exist anywhere, your species' existence is more likely to continue.
Okay, that's it for me. Gotta get to work. (I wrote this last night, which meant editing, but you reading it this morning means spreadsheets. Either way, I'm working.) Ta ta for now.
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
I'm Kinda Boring
Ah, the mid-year doldrums. When I become the most boring person ever. Not that I'm all that exciting at other times of the year. I write, I read, I edit... lather, rinse, repeat. Sometimes I fish or I garden, but it's too damn hot right now to want to do that. This year, I've been exercising, too. Not exactly exciting stuffs.
But readers shouldn't really care about all that. I'm just the man behind the curtain. Pay no attention. The real show is the stories. There are eleven of them out there right now. I'm working on an even dozen by the end of summer and a baker's dozen by the end of the year. Those are interesting and exciting.
I'll never stop a murderer or a terrorist threat or an evil god-thing. I'll never rise up against my oppressors or figure out a mystery or save the day. I'm just a writer. I make that interesting stuff up in my head. It's exciting in there (some days) and I'll happily crack the skull and pour it onto a page for you.
But me, personally? I'm kinda boring. And I'm okay with that.
But readers shouldn't really care about all that. I'm just the man behind the curtain. Pay no attention. The real show is the stories. There are eleven of them out there right now. I'm working on an even dozen by the end of summer and a baker's dozen by the end of the year. Those are interesting and exciting.
I'll never stop a murderer or a terrorist threat or an evil god-thing. I'll never rise up against my oppressors or figure out a mystery or save the day. I'm just a writer. I make that interesting stuff up in my head. It's exciting in there (some days) and I'll happily crack the skull and pour it onto a page for you.
But me, personally? I'm kinda boring. And I'm okay with that.
Sunday, July 8, 2018
Sunday Update - Week 26
Halfway through the year again. Where did those months go? :shrug:
I didn't do any writing again this week, but I did get some editing done. Not as much as I should've but I'm still on track. I have to be really careful with this book because I'm likely to just start reading it when I ought to be editing. It's that kind of book.
Read two books last week before the reading wrap-up, and I finished another last night. Which was a good thing because I was so engrossed in reading that I wasn't at all encouraged to edit while the book was sitting there unfinished. And I'm still mentally engrossed in the book, so I've picked a romance to read next. Kind of a 'clean your mental palate' thing.
No fishing again. It's too hot and I'm too anti-people to go out anywhere near this holiday - even if today is deliciously cool for a change.
Did active things 6 out of 7 days. Mostly exercise and walking. I'm doing about 15-20 minutes of exercise/dancing and then a one mile walk around the neighborhood loop. That takes me about 25 minutes. It's all hills, all the time. I'm not losing any weight right now, though. It's too close to my hormone shot to expect to lose weight. In fact, last I checked I'd gained about a pound. After the shot, that should drop away. Damned girly hormone weight. Anyway, the shot's in 9 days. No worries. I'm not going to stop my activity plan just because I'm not seeing progress on the scale. That would be silly. I'm seeing progress elsewhere. And besides the girly-pounds, I figure I'm in a weight redistribution phase. The fat weight is redistributing to muscle weight. At least that's my story. ;o)
Other than that, not much going on here. How about there?
I didn't do any writing again this week, but I did get some editing done. Not as much as I should've but I'm still on track. I have to be really careful with this book because I'm likely to just start reading it when I ought to be editing. It's that kind of book.
Read two books last week before the reading wrap-up, and I finished another last night. Which was a good thing because I was so engrossed in reading that I wasn't at all encouraged to edit while the book was sitting there unfinished. And I'm still mentally engrossed in the book, so I've picked a romance to read next. Kind of a 'clean your mental palate' thing.
No fishing again. It's too hot and I'm too anti-people to go out anywhere near this holiday - even if today is deliciously cool for a change.
Did active things 6 out of 7 days. Mostly exercise and walking. I'm doing about 15-20 minutes of exercise/dancing and then a one mile walk around the neighborhood loop. That takes me about 25 minutes. It's all hills, all the time. I'm not losing any weight right now, though. It's too close to my hormone shot to expect to lose weight. In fact, last I checked I'd gained about a pound. After the shot, that should drop away. Damned girly hormone weight. Anyway, the shot's in 9 days. No worries. I'm not going to stop my activity plan just because I'm not seeing progress on the scale. That would be silly. I'm seeing progress elsewhere. And besides the girly-pounds, I figure I'm in a weight redistribution phase. The fat weight is redistributing to muscle weight. At least that's my story. ;o)
Other than that, not much going on here. How about there?
Saturday, July 7, 2018
Saturday Reading Wrap-up 07/07/18
Hello again.
I didn't read as many books this week, but the two I did read weren't fast reads. And as of last night, I was halfway through another book that's not quick.
38) The Shadow of the Lynx by Victoria Holt (7/4/18) - Historical Romantic Suspense - 4 stars. Neither new to me nor underappreciated.
Review: " Interesting. Kind of a Thornbirds meets Jane Eyre with a little suspense there at the end."
37) Wizard's Child by DJ Salisbury (6/30/18) - Fantasy* - 5 stars - Definitely not new to me, but super underappreciated.
Review: "That was freakin' awesome! These books just keep getting better and better. I inhaled this one. And now, on to the next installment for Viper and his crew. Yay!"
DNF - Perfect Passion by Patricia Lake - I picked this one up at the thrift store because I still have fond memories of the old Harlequin Presents titles. This one is from 1981, I think. I started reading it and meh. The hero comes off as something of an ass. The heroine comes off as something of a bitch. I made it to pg 28, but I wasn't interested in reading more. I know that's how some of these old romances are set up, and they probably would've gotten more likeable, but I've gotta like at least one of the two main characters to devote more precious reading time to a book. NEXT!
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What I'm reading right now is DJ Salisbury's Magic's Child (the seventh and final book in her Mindbender's Rise series.) I'll be sad to end this, but she's already got another book out that is in the same world, (and I've already bought it), so it's all good.
As always, I hope you find something good to read in these wrap-ups.
Have you read anything good recently?
I didn't read as many books this week, but the two I did read weren't fast reads. And as of last night, I was halfway through another book that's not quick.
38) The Shadow of the Lynx by Victoria Holt (7/4/18) - Historical Romantic Suspense - 4 stars. Neither new to me nor underappreciated.
Review: " Interesting. Kind of a Thornbirds meets Jane Eyre with a little suspense there at the end."
37) Wizard's Child by DJ Salisbury (6/30/18) - Fantasy* - 5 stars - Definitely not new to me, but super underappreciated.
Review: "That was freakin' awesome! These books just keep getting better and better. I inhaled this one. And now, on to the next installment for Viper and his crew. Yay!"
DNF - Perfect Passion by Patricia Lake - I picked this one up at the thrift store because I still have fond memories of the old Harlequin Presents titles. This one is from 1981, I think. I started reading it and meh. The hero comes off as something of an ass. The heroine comes off as something of a bitch. I made it to pg 28, but I wasn't interested in reading more. I know that's how some of these old romances are set up, and they probably would've gotten more likeable, but I've gotta like at least one of the two main characters to devote more precious reading time to a book. NEXT!
-------------
What I'm reading right now is DJ Salisbury's Magic's Child (the seventh and final book in her Mindbender's Rise series.) I'll be sad to end this, but she's already got another book out that is in the same world, (and I've already bought it), so it's all good.
As always, I hope you find something good to read in these wrap-ups.
Have you read anything good recently?
Thursday, July 5, 2018
Thursday This n That
The fireworks actually weren't too obnoxious last night. I made up my mind before bed to treat the noise like a thunderstorm. I sleep through thunderstorms all the time. No big whoop. It's all about perspective, doncha know.
Speaking of fireworks, Hubs read on the local news where the nearby wide spot in the road had to cancel their display. The company they contracted with to shoot off the display had a fire at their facility on Tuesday. Can you imagine? Fire at a fireworks factory. Scary shit there.
Once upon a time, back in 1992, I was engaged to a volunteer fireman and his department put on the fireworks display for the suburb of Chicago we lived in. One of the fireworks exploded on the ground. Yep, scary shit. (Until this morning, I'd forgotten about that. Score one for my memory.)
We've still only seen one fawn this year. I've named him Little Prince. He's so cute, gamboling around the yard. Then he noticed the water pan. He snuck up to it, but he must've seen his reflection in the water because he jumped and ran away. So cute.
Speaking of deer, Hubs just looked outside and they're already waiting for him. It's 6am, guys, have a little patience. Geez.
We tried to find a fireworks display on TV last night. Of the three TV specials that were supposed to be fireworks, all three had some kind of rock concert type thing when we switched over to it - including the Boston Pops one. And it wasn't the orchestra. It was some boy band or something, singing pop music. Bleh. I'm guessing if we'd sat through the hype we would've eventually seen fireworks, but who's got time for that shit? I want John Phillips Souza music with freakin' sparklies, dammit.
Despite not actually going to the fireworks in the great outdoors, I got eaten alive by mosquitoes yesterday evening. I was watering the gardens. So itchy. I did grab some plantains (broadleaf weeds, not the banana cousin) while I was out there and rubbed them on the bites I could reach while watering. That worked pretty good, but man, I was a pincushion by the time I was done. And everything needs watering right now because it's so damn dry. We had a rambunctious thunderstorm a couple days ago. Banging and booming and a minor power outage, but did it rain? Oh hell no. All we got was like two minutes of sprinkles. Just enough to make patterns in the dust on my car.
On a happier note, the ornamental grass I bought that I thought was probably dead is sending up new shoots.
Well, I could go on... and on and on... but I should probably get on with my day. What's on your this n that radar this morning?
Speaking of fireworks, Hubs read on the local news where the nearby wide spot in the road had to cancel their display. The company they contracted with to shoot off the display had a fire at their facility on Tuesday. Can you imagine? Fire at a fireworks factory. Scary shit there.
Once upon a time, back in 1992, I was engaged to a volunteer fireman and his department put on the fireworks display for the suburb of Chicago we lived in. One of the fireworks exploded on the ground. Yep, scary shit. (Until this morning, I'd forgotten about that. Score one for my memory.)
We've still only seen one fawn this year. I've named him Little Prince. He's so cute, gamboling around the yard. Then he noticed the water pan. He snuck up to it, but he must've seen his reflection in the water because he jumped and ran away. So cute.
Speaking of deer, Hubs just looked outside and they're already waiting for him. It's 6am, guys, have a little patience. Geez.
We tried to find a fireworks display on TV last night. Of the three TV specials that were supposed to be fireworks, all three had some kind of rock concert type thing when we switched over to it - including the Boston Pops one. And it wasn't the orchestra. It was some boy band or something, singing pop music. Bleh. I'm guessing if we'd sat through the hype we would've eventually seen fireworks, but who's got time for that shit? I want John Phillips Souza music with freakin' sparklies, dammit.
Despite not actually going to the fireworks in the great outdoors, I got eaten alive by mosquitoes yesterday evening. I was watering the gardens. So itchy. I did grab some plantains (broadleaf weeds, not the banana cousin) while I was out there and rubbed them on the bites I could reach while watering. That worked pretty good, but man, I was a pincushion by the time I was done. And everything needs watering right now because it's so damn dry. We had a rambunctious thunderstorm a couple days ago. Banging and booming and a minor power outage, but did it rain? Oh hell no. All we got was like two minutes of sprinkles. Just enough to make patterns in the dust on my car.
On a happier note, the ornamental grass I bought that I thought was probably dead is sending up new shoots.
Well, I could go on... and on and on... but I should probably get on with my day. What's on your this n that radar this morning?
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