Cora Zane's Blog, page 6

My Mind Won't Let Me Sleep

My impression of insomnia. Bright city lights gleaming in the brain,
stop-start thoughts flowing in congested knots like Saturday night traffic,
neon lights blinking, flashing, burning, while people shout at
pedestrians from their cars and zip around tight corners with horns blaring. 
It's 4:08 am. I've been up all night revising. One more chapter to go, then Bonding Experience will be ready for re-release.

Earlier, closer to around 2 in the morning, I was taking a break between chapters and...

8/8 Lion's Gate - Accelerated Transformation

My 88 Lion's Gate Digital Collage.
Since July I've been seeing the numbers 88, 888, 828 and 28 everywhere. August 28th is my birthday, so I always notice a 28 and 828 crop up. However, there hasn't been a single day since July where a combo of 88 or 28 hasn't cropped up for me.

I'm seeing those numbers multiple times per day. It's showing up in license plates of the cars in front of me while I'm at stoplights, I'm seeing it online everywhere - number of likes, number of posts, blah blah. I'm se...

Brain Dumping on the Black Moon

It's 2:34 Thursday morning, and I just wrapped up revisions on a difficult chapter, one that I had been putting off the past couple of days because I wasn't sure how to fix it. Well, that is done now, and I feel like I've just crossed the finish line at the end of a very long marathon. Hmm. Funny thing, I still have a few chapters left to go before this project is ready to publish. And another funny thing, I think Mercury turns direct today, but correct me if I'm wrong.

I'm taking a break...

I Plan, Therefore I Am

I can't remember what got me started using planners. It's a fairly recent habit I've picked up. I always used notebooks before, or 3 ring binders, but I'm having fun with the disc bound Happy Planner system at the moment.

I bought the dark blue starry planner on sale at Hobby Lobby right before I started the cover blitz back in June. I didn't know at the time that these planners have a devoted following. I was looking for replacement paper and found their product page on Instagram. Talk a...

Beginner Friendly Crochet Halter Top Pattern

This is a simple, beginner-friendly halter. The only stitches you need are chain stitches and double crochet. You can make as many rows as you need to fit it to your size. Beginners, if you use a variegated yarn, it will help you hide any stitching mistakes. I prefer to use the softest yarn I have on hand, but any medium weight yarn (or lighter) should work fine.

The exact yarns I used were from my overflowing yarn stash. They were Peaches & Creme Brand in the color Psychedelic Ombre and R...

Popcorn Scented Goodness

I already posted this on Instagram, but I love it too much not to share it here on the blog. I'm in the middle of revisions for Bonding Experience. I've already printed and marked up my manuscript with a popcorn scented marker, and I've begun keying in the changes. But, oh my gosh, the marker ink smells so good I'm kind of obsessing over it.

I started journaling and story planning using markers roughly a year ago, perhaps a little longer than that. Now I story plan exclusively in markers....

Sunday Story Craft

Image by congerdesign at Pixabay

Today's photo sums up my weekend - yarns and more yarns. This afternoon I completed the rough rough draft of a short story that I'll be sending out for submission next week. The hero is so dreamy. Sigh. It's been a while since I fell so hard for a hero, but this one is a big yes. I'm excited to send him out into the wilds to brave the editor's desk. I love him. He's a worthy contender.

Between rounds of brain dumping into my Happy Planner for this story and fawn...

Crossing Borders now at Smashwords

Crossing Borders, the novella that started the Werekind Series, is finally back on the market after a long hiatus. It's available now on Smashwords in ePub format.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/949289

Drawn into the woods by someone howling in the night, Laney finds the source of the call is none other than her old flame, Cole Holbrook. He has come back to claim her as his mate, despite the bitter rivalry between himself and the pack leader - her brother, Seth. He's determined noth...

How to Calculate Your Words Per Hour (WPH) Writing or Reading Speed

Whether you're trying to figure out your writing, reading, or dictation speed, here's a quick and dirty post about how to determine your words per hour.


Time yourself reading aloud in Dragon or some other dictation software at a comfortable pace for ten minutes. If you're trying to figure out your writing speed, not your reading speed, do a ten minute timed writing instead.Check your word count at the end of the timed reading or writing. Take your word count and multiply it by 6. 
For...

Clean Clothes Equal Happiness

The new washing machine is here!

As a domestic diva who has already tired of washing hubby's work jeans by hand (even though I only had to do it for a couple of days), I'm 100% thrilled with the new washer. It's a Hot Point top loader, and it's quite a bit larger than my old machine. That's a very good thing when you're dealing with bulky, fire retardant clothes on a daily basis.

The nice delivery guy even hauled off the old washer for us. What a peach. I'm totally grateful. Now, I have a...