Just Dropping In

Long time, no post. I hope everyone who celebrates Thanksgiving had a wonderful one!

I think this might be the longest I've gone between blog posts in a few years, maybe even the longest ever. I just haven't really had all that much to blog about over the last three weeks. Partly because I just haven't had much to say, but also partly because I was deeply immersed in this year's NaNoWriMo.

I started it late this year due to the hurricane (or superstorm, or whatever it actually was.) Well, sort of late. I did begin it on November 1, writing longhand in a spiral notebook I'd bought in anticipation of losing power with the hurricane (based on what happened after Tropical Storm Irene, I took no chances when Sandy was bearing down on us.) So while we had no electricity, I managed to fill nearly twenty pages of that notebook. Which then had to be transcribed into the computer, which took a few days. Then I was able to get back into the story. And it just took off.

Some NaNos are a real battle. Tiger Eyes began life as a NaNo project and every one of those 50k words was a struggle. It wasn't until about 3/4s of the way into that book, that writing it became enjoyable. Then there was the year I did NaNo while in the midst of edits on several other books. Because of the past, I almost decided not to do NaNo this year. I didn't sign up until the very end of October because I wasn't sure I wanted to put myself through it again.

But this time around, the story came easily. Despite the late start, I had a bunch of days where I did 5k+ words, so I quickly made up for the lost time. And this project was fun to work on - for the most part. There were still a few days when I just didn't want to be bothered, so I took those days off and said to hell with the daily word count. And I found out that doing so actually worked to my advantage. I took a day here, a day there, and when I came back, I was a writing fool.

And now we're getting into the swing of the holiday season, so I doubt I'll be back to regular blogging any time soon. I'm halfway through the book that my NaNo project is going to be and the writing is going well, so I'm concentrating on that. It's a bit of a change from my previous books - this one takes place in 1885 in the Southwest, so it deals with cowboys and bounty hunters and a road trip through the New Mexico Territory to Chicago and it's been fun to write so far. Fun, but time consuming.

So, if I don't see you before then, have a Merry Christmas (or a Happy Hanukkah) and I'll see you in 2013 (unless the Mayans were onto something and the world ends on December 21st. :D)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Last year, I 'inherited' cooking Thanksgiving dinner from my mom. A few years ago, I suggested maybe I should take it over, and was met with stone-cold silence. Then last year, Mom decided she'd had enough. And so, it became my holiday.

This year, with my mom being sick (she's in the hospital right now. Keep your fingers crossed she's actually home in time for tomorrow,  but it isn't looking so good right now,) the entire family is gathering at my house for dinner. A dozen people. It's going to be crazy.

But at the same time, it'll be a good kind of crazy. Despite the less-than-ideal circumstance, I'm looking forward to having all of us here. My aunt and uncle are coming down from upstate New York, and since they never come down for Thanksgiving, I'm really looking forward to seeing them.

It's been a rough year for my family. My mom was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer in July. She's been through two rounds of radiation and will start a third round soon, she's been hospitalized four times, spent six weeks in a rehab facility, and was admitted again to the hospital on Sunday morning. As I said, we're hoping to have her home for tomorrow, but it isn't looking too good.

But, I'm thankful that she's still here, with us. I'm thankful that, professionally speaking, it's been a good year for me. I've contracted five books, with four of them since July. It's kept me busy, and considering how my year's been, busy has been good.

What about you? As you sit down to Thanksgiving - what are you thankful for?

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Stay safe and don't OD on the turkey!

Kindle vs. Nook - Which One to Choose?

I have a confession to make -

I don't own an e-reader.

There. I said it. I don't own an e-reader. Whew, I feel better now.

Okay, so that said, I'm thinking about taking the plunge and getting one. Maybe after Christmas. Trouble is, I'm a little torn between the Kindle and the Nook. My brother swears by his Kindle. I've heard others swear by the Nook. So, which to choose? Decisions, decisions.

In other news, I finished my NaNoWriMo project over the weekend, and the edits to Tiger Eyes are pretty much done (one more read through before they go off to my editor), so now... vacation! What a lovely word and I am soooo looking forward to the time off.

Oh, and have I mentioned Playing with Fire comes out this Friday? Yay! :D

And then there's Thanksgiving. Last year, I inherited the cooking duties. This year, with my mom being sick, we're having a full house. It will be noisy, there will be much food and wine, and it will be nice having the family together. I'm glad I don't have to do any traveling, as I'd much rather be home cooking than going anywhere. We'll be up early, the Macy's Parade will be on, the house will smell wonderful, and we'll all be together. That's all that matters.

What about you? What're your Turkey Day plans?

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Happy Thanksgiving - May your turkeys be juicy and the wine plentiful!

Stay safe and enjoy.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Yes, I know I'm a little early, but I probably won't have time to look in the direction of my office, never mind sit down and actually get to post tomorrow. Yes, for the first time in my life, I am cooking Thanksgiving dinner.

Okay, I'm not really cooking all of it. My mom's coming over and we're going to cook dinner together - but it's the first Thanksgiving of my life that won't be at my mom's house, which is kind of weird to think about. I can't remember ever being anywhere but Mom's house on Thanksgiving.

So, I will be up early, watching the parade (as usual, of course) and preparing for the onslaught of fam tomorrow afternoon - oh, and watching football, of course.

But I wanted to take a moment and wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. And, as you sit down to dinner tomorrow night with your loved ones, keep in your thoughts the families affected by what's going on in Mumbai.

Happy Thanksgiving!