C. Lee McKenzie's Blog, page 25

Let's Talk Insecurity

Thanks AlexRemember, the question is optional! 

July 5 Question: What is one valuable lesson you've learned since you started writing?
The awesome co-hosts for the July 5 posting of the IWSG will be Tamara Narayan, Pat Hatt, Patricia Lynne, Juneta Key, and Doreen McGettigan!


The I-Word is not too big, only ten letters long. Yet it carries one of the biggest, scariest emotions writers deal with every day. Here are three questions that cause my insecure quotient to rise.

Is this book ready to submit?
The first question is huge. You have only your own intuitions to follow until you offer it up for readers and feedback. And you must do that. Others will see the positives and the negatives. They'll call attention to things you missed while tending to the big picture. They may open up new threads that escaped your notice. And they'll help you answer that first question.

Who should I submit to?
Today the choices are many: sub to an agent, sub to a small press or do it yourself. Each of these choices takes you down a different road, and before you start, you have no idea what that road will be like. It's only after you look back that you either regret or cheer your decision.

How should I submit it?
Time was that you queried, then waited. When the rejection came, you repeated that process. Today there are all kinds of ways to sub your manuscript. And . . .drum roll here. . .the Twitter Pitch Party is one of the most recent successes in the sub process. 



#IWSGPit
July 27, 2017
8:00 am to 8:00 pm Eastern Time
Are you pitching? Will you take a look and follow the party? It should be wild and a lot of fun.Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Hero Lost, Mysteries of Death and Life, Part 1

This July I'll be featuring the twelve authors (three each Monday) who contributed stories to the Hero Lost Mysteries of Death and LifeAn Insecure Writer’s Support Group Anthology

Website -  Lost Hero Anthology
Print ISBN 9781939844361 $14.95
eBook ISBN 9781939844378 $4.99
Goodreads Print:Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Books A MillionEBook:Nook, iTunes, Kobo, Amazon, Amazon UK, and Amazon CA
Each author has submitted their favorite inspirational quote, so this month I won't be adding my usual quote. 
Thank you, authors!

Jen Chandler, The Mysteries of Death and Life
"Keep working. Follow the shape of your mind's particulars (its rhythms, its oddities) like a bloodhound, and take the 'narrative' as far as you possibly can, so that the words are utterly yours, so that you're writing in that singular way that singular thing NO ONE but you can write. Each time." ―Ari Banias, poet, From an interview in the Jan/Feb 2017 issue of Poets & Writers Magazinep.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Trebuchet MS'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Trebuchet MS'; color: #0000ff; -webkit-text-stroke: #0000ff} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} span.s2 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none} span.s3 {font-kerning: none; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #000000} span.s4 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none; color: #0000ff; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #0000ff} Blog | Instagram
L. Nahay, Breath Between Seconds
"A writer is a world trapped within a person." ―Victor Hugop.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Trebuchet MS'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Trebuchet MS'; color: #0000ff; -webkit-text-stroke: #0000ff} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} span.s2 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none} span.s3 {font-kerning: none; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #000000} span.s4 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none; color: #0000ff; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #0000ff} Web | Blog | Twitter | Instagram


Roland Yeomans, Sometimes They Come Back
"Just because I am on a different path than you does not mean I am lost." ―Samuel McCordp.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Trebuchet MS'; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 11.0px 'Trebuchet MS'; color: #0000ff; -webkit-text-stroke: #0000ff} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} span.s2 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none} span.s3 {font-kerning: none; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #000000} span.s4 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none; color: #0000ff; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #0000ff}
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Don't miss the July 30 deadline for the next IWSG Anthology.  Enter Now.



For all My Email Connect Peeps I'm offering a free mobi or mp3 of a short story from the anthology, Beware the Little White Rabbit. 

Have you read an anthology lately?  Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Why You Shouldn't Write Books

I’m always entertained by things my non-writer friends say about what I do. Things like, “It’s so neat that you do your own thing without other people telling how to do it.”  Or, “Love the idea of royalties. I’d like to make lots of money while I’m on vacation.” Or, “How neat it would be to work by myself! I wouldn’t have to get along with that bunch in the office.” And here’s a great one. “So you just write the story and send it to an editor who fixes all the problems?”
Right. 
I thought this article might show them how wrong their ideas are about what a writer’s life is like and maybe someone considering a writing career might find this useful as well.
So what are the reasons Not To Write?
If you can’t take criticism, put down your pen and turn off that computer. From the first  word to the last period, your writing should be up for comment and suggestion. If you’re lucky, you have a professional and keen-eyed critique group that will help you make your manuscript the best it can be before you put it up for sale. And if you do make a sale and your book is published, your readers may or may not be delighted with what you’ve written. Reviews can be great and they can be terrible. 


If you think you’re going to make lots of money fast, think again. Sure there are some writers who hit the top and stay there, but the majority do not. Many don’t sell books at all. Some sell a few. Some do manage to create a steady income. It’s a hard game and you have to be prepared for not seeing a lot of return for your time and energy invested.


If you can’t get along with others, you’re in for some hard times as a writer. There will be deadlines to meet. If you don’t meet them, you inconvenience others. There will be people who want your help and support with their writing. If you can’t do that, then don’t expect others to help and support your writing. Then there will be the public, the people who read your books. If you you can’t interact with them, so that they enjoy meeting you, do you think they’ll look for your next book? Quite possibly not.


If you don’t want to spend the time editing and re-writing, then take up tennis or go shopping. A good book isn’t written the first time through. If anyone says they can do a first draft that’s perfect, I want to see it. 
Can you think of other reasons people shouldn’t write books?



Don't forget to visit my Featured Follower of the Month, J.H. Moncrief, if you haven't already. And are you up for some free books? Say so in the comment section.   p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 15.0px; font: 14.0px Verdana; color: #222222; -webkit-text-stroke: #222222; background-color: #ffffff; min-height: 17.0px} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 16.0px; font: 14.0px Verdana; color: #222222; -webkit-text-stroke: #222222; background-color: #ffffff} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} span.s2 {font-kerning: none; color: #9f0707; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #9f0707}

My Email Connect Followers are in for a treat this month with two free book offers from this author. Thanks, J.H.








If you haven't heard the great news, The Insecure Writer's Support Group is now in the top 101 best websites on Writer's Digest!

Quote of the Week: "No performer should attempt to bite off red-hot iron unless he has a good set of teeth." Harry Houdini (This is true of writers, too! Don't you think?)

Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Let Me Tell You a Story About Enid

In my middle grade story, Sign of the Green Dragon, I finally had a chance to write about Chinese mythology. It fascinates me because I fell in love with China and her ancient stories a long time ago. 
When I was about six, a woman named Enid Mihilov took me under her literary wing. She had an amazing library with many books from all over the world, but the Chinese ones were distinct. I didn’t realize it at the time, but those books, which she allowed me to hold, were very old, one-of-a-kind, and in retrospect, must have been printed on handmade paper in a long-ago century. Enid read them to me in Chinese while I looked at the pictures. Misty mountains. Dragons streaming through the sky on important business for an emperor. Exotic silk gowns and palaces of gold.
Dragon on a Canal Barge
This person opened a lot of things about the world to me. In the center of her library was a globe in a wooden cradle that was bigger than I was. I still remember her turning that globe, tracing the Yangtze River across China and telling me about the beauty of the Three Gorges. When I was older, I understood how much this Russian woman had traveled, that she spoke several languages, and knew more first-hand about geography than my teachers. 
When I finally did land in the Far East, I was primed to absorb as much about that culture as possible. I climbed the Great Wall, explored palaces and finally went up the Yangtze through the Three Gorges before the dam was completed and closed off one of the most beautiful areas in the world.

At the Top of the Great Wall with Two Friends
Enid and I kept in touch for years, even after my family moved. Unfortunately, when we returned to see her, she had died, so I never had a chance to tell her how important our time together had been to me. Someday I’m going to write what I remember of my afternoons with Enid Mihilov. And having written that, I think I have a title already.




This month I'm featuring another writer who loves to travel. J.H. Moncrieff jets off to far away places to soak up the settings and get ready to write her next story of suspense or horror. She has several out and I've read one so far. I'll be reading more in the future. 

Here's my review of The Bear Who Wouldn't Leave.






AMAZON



". . .a web of conspiracy, betrayal, and murder."











Don't forget that SUBMISSION are open for the next #ISWG Anthology. You have until July 31 to submit.
Title: Writing for Profit
Word Limit: 500-1000 words
Submission: admin AT insecurewriterssupportgroup DOT com







Quote of the Week: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.” 
 ― Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad/Roughing ItBeware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Please Make Me Want to Read Your Book

Please make me want to read your book. I really want to read it, but you have to help me out.

This may seem odd, but last month I started three books; I was only able to finish two. In one, the opening two sentences had three grammatical errors. Seriously. In the next one, the Kindle formatting was bad


I


had            trouble following

the







               story.

I finally found a book I could read and enjoy, so thank you for the fine editing, the good formatting and the satisfying read, Ms. Professional Author.






#IWSG Book Club selection this month is The Secret Garden. We're reading it to have a discussion about characterization. There are several reasons not to finish this book. One is the omniscient point of view. The author takes you into everyone's head, including some small animals, without so much as a scene change. Then there's the heavy use of respelling to create the Yorkshire dialect. That's hard to follow, especially when there are long chunks of one person speaking. It's filled with tropes such as the wise and gentle peasant in the bucolic cottage, the orphaned girl, the invalid restored to health by nature, the grieving uncle off to find solace in other places. Most of the story is written in what today's critics call Telling. The author simply tells you how the characters feel, she doesn't bother to reveal those feelings by Showing the character in action.

However, it still holds up as a great story.  First, I responded to the story as a period piece, and then before I knew it, I was caught up and wanted to follow the MC's journey to the end. It didn't matter that I was head-hopping or that I was being told how the characters felt. I was in the hands of a storyteller and enjoying the time in her tale. 

If you haven't joined us, I hope you will. The discussions are interesting. 


Join Us


Clare Dugmore and Kyra LennonEnter and tell about those small things that make you smile!

Here are mine: The view from the top of any mountain. Hills, too. The morning. A good friend who stops by. An excellent book. My family.


Quote of the Week: "Books are uniquely portable magic." Stephen KingBeware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

#IWSG Attack of the Insecurity Monster and How To Survive It

Thanks AlexEvery month, we announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say. Remember, the question is optional! June 3 Question: Did you ever say “I quit”? If so, what happened to make you come back to writing?The awesome co-hosts for the June 7 posting of the IWSG will be JH Moncrieff, Madeline Mora-Summonte, Jen Chandler, Megan Morgan, and Heather Gardner!
SourceIt's so easy to ward off the attack of the Insecurity Monster. Look at this tiny girl does it! She points and says, "Back off buddy. You don't scare me."Confronting our insecurities isn't quite this simple, but running away or hiding won't work. I know that from personal experience. And if you're already a #IWSG member, you've taken a giant step toward being as brave as little miss on the left. Pat yourself on the back, then get busy writing or submitting your work with confidence.
Answer to June 3 Question: I haven't said, I quit yet. I hate quitting projects until I've done what I set out to do. I haven't succeeded in what I want to do in my writing yet, so quitting's not an option. 
Oh and look what's happening next! The IWSG Guide to Writing for Profit--This will be a non-fiction book like our Guide to Publishing and Beyond.
What to write: Share experiences about making a profit as an author, what it takes to become a successful writer, the many skills a writer needs to learn other than writing, share the experience going from hobby writer to published author (without making it a self-promotion piece), the fallacies behind writing for profit, the little known facts learned along the way, what you wished you knew when you first started writing, or marketing tips based on experience of what has worked and what hasn't. Please include a title, your name, and a link to one of your sites. Send as an attached Word file or pasted into the email.If you have any questions, email us at admin AT insecurewriterssupportgroup.com
Word limit: 500-1000 words.

Submission eligibility: All members of the IWSG Blog Hop, IWSG Facebook group and/or members of our IWSG Goodreads Book Club. It's free to join any of these groups and a great benefit to be a part of these communities.Deadline: July 31, 2017Send your piece to admin AT insecurewriterssupportgroup.com as an attached Word document and note which IWSG group you belong to. Please include your name, a one line bio, and one website link.

Do you like the monthly question?
Are you going to jump into the IWSG next amazing adventure and submit your experience?Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Horror In June? How about More Excitement from #IWSG?

Yes to Horror in June because J. H. Moncrieff is my Featured Follower.

Who is J.H. Moncrieff? Her blog says she "has been obsessed with psychological suspense, mysteries, and true crime for as long as she can remember. She’s endlessly fascinated by what makes people tick and has visited many of the world’s most haunted places." 

So, are you ready for a few bone-shaking, nail-biting tales? Here you go!



The Girl Who Talks to Ghosts is her latest. Is this a great cover, or what?

 "J.H. Moncrieff is a bold new voice in horror and supernatural suspense." - Chuck Wendig, New York Times Bestselling Author of Blackbirds

Amazon (universal) . Kobo . Barnes & Noble . iBooks 




City of Ghosts. 

On the day the villagers were forced to flee Hensu, not everyone got out alive.

***** Review
"The characters came to life and I couldn't stop worrying about them! The writing,characterization, structure--everything that makes a reader keep turning pages--contributed to this outstanding novel. Thanks for an incredible read!"
Amazon (universal) .  Kobo .  Barnes & Noble .  iBooks 

My Email Connect Followers are in for a treat this month with two free book offers from this author. Thanks, J.H.

You can check out her other books as well and connect with the author here.
Twitter . Facebook  .  Website .  Pinterest  



Goodreads Book of the Month is The Secret Garden














Don't Miss June 7 #IWSG Post. Big News












 Welcome to two new #IWSG Admins.


Pat Hatt , our Twitterer for @The IWSG

Nick Wilford, our man on the Contests Page.

Quote of the Week: "Searchers after horror haunt strange, far places."  p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 15.0px; font: 12.0px Verdana; color: #333333; -webkit-text-stroke: #333333; background-color: #ffffff} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 12.0px; font: 10.0px Verdana; color: #333333; -webkit-text-stroke: #333333; background-color: #ffffff} span.s1 {font-kerning: none; color: #000000; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #000000} span.s2 {font-kerning: none}
H. P. Lovecraft
Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Let Me Tell You A Story about The Goose and Black Coffee

When Memorial Day arrives, I think of my dad and his stories of WWII. He didn't tell me many until the last days of his life, but I have a collection of them in my head and remembering them is a way for me to remember him and celebrate him along with the others who've fought for our freedom.

The Goose and Black Coffee is one of my favorites, so I'm sharing it here today for my dad and all those others. Most of what I'm sharing is correct, but this is a story from an old memory, passed on to me some years ago and from sketchy notes in his photo album. The essence of the story is the best I can do.




France May, 1944

It was a gray day and the four dogfaces were tired and cold, in need of a place to sleep out of the weather. Their stomachs growled for something to eat. As they drove down a country road, they spotted a spiral of smoke. There was nothing unusual in seeing smoke, but even from a distance it didn't look like a house was on fire. And it wasn't a field. As they came nearer, they saw that it was a fireplace. That meant they might find something to eat and a place to take shelter before joining up with their unit. They were recon, so they often were ahead of the others and more frequently across enemy lines than behind them.

At the farmhouse gate, they pulled their Jeep to a stop. This place had escaped the bombs. The barn was still standing, and one lonely goose wandered out, then flapped its way around the side of the house, which was also untouched by the war. They might have driven off, my dad said, but they couldn't resist the aroma of freshly brewed coffee coming from that house.

When they entered the kitchen, it was clear that the family had been there moments before my dad and the others got out of the Jeep. They poured themselves some coffee, and as my dad recalled, he'd never tasted anything quite a wonderful. 

Now their stomachs really cried out for something to eat and that goose was out there and this might be the last real meal any of the men would have for weeks. The goose gave its life for the U.S. Army that day, and my dad, who was always handy in the kitchen, seasoned it and put it into the oven. Now all they had to do was wait. They were dry. They were warm for the first time in weeks. They'd soon have enough goose to last until D-Day, they joked.

They kicked back and savored the scent of sizzling goose and were debating about a quick nap when the bombs started raining down on them. Like my dad said, "We were not leaving that goose or that coffee behind." 

They grabbed the partially cooked goose from the oven, the coffee from the stove and jumped into the Jeep. With the goose and coffee secured between two of them in the back, they drove off, barely escaping the bombs. 

It took them three days to find another house with a workable stove and oven, but when they did, they also found several unbroken bottles of wine. They stuffed that goose back into the oven, reheated the coffee and uncorked a little wine--maybe a lot of wine. 

Above this picture my dad wrote, "Photo below brings back memories. Had a goose in oven of home with all veggies and big post of coffee going. 10 minutes after photo we were under heavy fire. Carried that goose for 3 days with that coffee before we could do it justice."


Dad's looking kind of serious second from the left. Not the best shot of him.

Here's the "Recon Fox" that Disney presented to the 93rd Reconnaissance Squadron Mechanized that my dad was part of. I love looking through his collection of photos and notes. I find something I didn't know about each time.






Quote of the Week: "A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers and woods, it is a principle and patriotism is loyalty to that principle." George William Curtis 


Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

My Short Post of the Month, But There is a Tomato Report

Cathrina Constantine has been my May Featured Follower. I hope you'll buy her book, read it and review it. The sixties! Ah, the sixties!













One of my good friends, S.A. Larson has a new book coming out. Take a look!




I read the excerpt on the author's blog and now have this book on my list. You can buy it here.









The Tomato Report





Then there's the on-going tomato saga.  No tomatoes, but one heck of a lot of shrubberies. Anyone who doesn't live in the mountains can't understand the struggle to get tomatoes before September, and that's exactly what I've set out to do. I'm challenging Mother Nature. Man is she tough!









You might notice the brevity of this post. Let me explain. I'm writing. I'm in the cave, and I am not doing as well as I'd like; however, a little setback like not "getting" the characters, or not "getting" the plot and tension, or not "getting" the whole #!$$! story together is not bothering me. Just wanted you to know.


Quote of the Week:

Keep in mind, Brevity is the souls of wit. . .or sometimes you're just short of time. Well, aren't we all?Beware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew

Let Me Tell You A Story & My UnTomato Report

My mother-in-law spent her early years in a small town called New Pine Creek. It straddles the border between Oregon and California, and it can see some heavy winters. She often told the story about the winter Goose Lake froze so quickly that it trapped geese--froze their feet to the surface before they could escape.

Every time she told that story, people laughed.
"Not possible."

I have to admit I was skeptical, but she was an honest person, so I accepted her story as the truth. Well, and she was my husband's mother. 

When I found this video about geese who were frozen in a pond and held it up as evidence, that still wasn't enough for some naysayers. 

"Ponds are shallow and it's possible for them to freeze quickly. Lakes are deep, and that couldn't happen on one of them."

Ah ah, research to the rescue! I discovered that Goose Lake has a very shallow edge, so my mother-in-law's story from her childhood, was quite possibly true.

Want a little heart-warming video about a very cold goose? Here you go!




The UnTomato Report
Tomatoes in May? Not Quite, but my roses aren't too shabby this year. One reason is that we mended the fence and the deer haven't feasted on them. 1 for the gardener. 0 for the deer.







Are you a member of The Insecure Writers Group Book Club? No? I'm shocked. 200 of us are. Join up and get in on the discussion of our first book this month,


Chapter After Chapter: Discover the Dedication & Focus You Need to Write the Book of Your Dreams




Quote of the Week: "The Earth laughs in flowers." Ralph Waldo EmersonBeware the White Rabbit (Anthology: They Call Me Alice), Leap Books, Summer '15
Sliding on the Edge, C. Lee McKenzie, WestSide Books, Spring '09
The Princess of Las Pulgas, WestSide Books, Fall '10
The First Time, Fall '11 (Anthology story: Premeditated Cat)
Alligators Overhead, Outskirts Press, Fall '12
Two and Twenty Dark Tales (Anthology story: Into the Sea of Dew