Michelle Scott's Blog, page 20

Magical Spoon Ring

Inspiration, like I said before, comes from the strangest places.  Today, it came in the shape of a silver spoon ring I bought at a craft shop in Ann Arbor.  The ring was made from the long end of a silver spoon (or fork, I suppose) that was twisted in a spiral to make a ring.  It’s even engraved with a letter D.  (I wonder whose grandma is missing a spoon out of her wedding silver service??)

Anyway, in writing Stagecraft, I needed a magical talisman of some kind, and when I saw this ring, I knew it would be perfect!  I also love the ring.  Talk about a win/win situation.

My Top Five Favorite Christmas Movies

Along with the tree, the cookies, and the celebration, I love the movies.  Although there are quite a few of them, these are the movies I try to watch every year.

1. White Christmas - this is my kids’ least-favorite holiday movie, but I can usually trick them into watching the first twenty minutes.  But once the ‘Sisters’ song comes up, they generally head out of the room.



2. Elf – I’m a huge Will Ferrell fan, and this movie makes me laugh every time I see it.  Its his portrayal of wide-eyed, innocent Buddy the Elf that gets to me.

3. Family Stone – another comedy, this one of the romantic comedy persuasion.  The family dynamics in this movie make it my favorite because to a certain extent, it reflects my own extended family.  Haven’t we all been there?

 

 

 

4. A Christmas Carol – there are a number of these movies, but my two favorites are the one with Patrick Stewart and an older one with Henry Winkler.  I love how the crotchety, old Scrooge experiences the feeling of grace after surviving the night with three ghosts.  Both of these do a nice interpretation of the classic tale.

5.  National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation - another family tale that makes me laugh at myself.  When it comes to setting up outdoor lights, I have all the luck of Clark W. Griswold.



What about you?  What holiday movies do you watch every season?  Are you a classic or a comedy viewer?

Brainstorming

Did you ever have one of those days when your imagination is as lazy as a sleeping cat?  That was me yesterday.

I had picked up a writing project I’ve had on hold for a while.  It’s Stagecraft, the sequel to Stage Fright, and for days, I’ve been anxious to get back to it.  Of course, the moment I booted it up on my computer, I couldn’t think of a thing to write.

I’d left my vampire killer in the hospital ER, and I knew that trouble was lurking outside, but I couldn’t figure out what came next.  (I think I’d spent too much time on my edits for Straight to Heaven.)  My mind was like a television with the power turned off.  I sat by the computer for nearly twenty minutes without thinking of a thing.  Finally, I gave up.

That night, I came back to it again.  Only this time, instead of staring at the empty Word document, I put on my favorite ambient music and started to doodle a chibi (a kind of mini-Manga that I think is so cute.)   I’m no artist, believe me, but keeping my hands busy let my mind drift.  This time, after twenty minutes, I knew exactly where the story went next.

The biggest part of dealing with writer’s block is learning to relax.  Instead of forcing the words out, open your mind and move on to other pursuits.  The story will eventually come.  In warm weather, I’d go for a walk or work in the garden.  In winter, I’ll draw (badly) or knit or even bake.  Anything to keep myself occupied while at the same time letting my thoughts run free.

 

When Everyone’s Home for the Holidays – 5 Ways to Maintain Your Creative Space

The Grinch’s heart might have grown three sizes because of Christmas, but at the holidays, my house seems to shrink to a third of what it was.

Tis the season when my family comes home to roost.  My son is home from college, and my husband (a teacher) and both my daughters will off of school for Christmas vacation.

While a full house makes for a lot of fun, all that activity can be frustrating when I’m looking for a little peace and quiet.  Since writing is my personal form of meditation (as well as a big part of my job), I can’t afford to take a few weeks off.  So what to do?

Here are five tips that have gotten me through the past fifteen years of Christmas vacations.

Work with the rhythms of your household

Like traffic, there are regular periods of busy and quiet times in a household.  Make use of those quiet times no matter when they fall.  Since I’m an early riser, the best time for me to write is before everyone else gets up.  However, there are also other periods when – for whatever reason – my family is occupied.  Right after dinner is a good time for us along with mid-afternoon.The breaks don’t have to be long ones, but pay attention to when your family is chatty and when they’re quiet.  And if they don’t come naturally, make them happen by sending the family off to the movies or to buy Christmas presents.
Set an open door policy

Even though my kids are older, they still demand a lot of attention.  Primarily, they want to know what’s for dinner, when is dinner, and what food is in the house.  They also come into my office when they’re bored.  Typically, I don’t mind the interruptions, but there are times when I need to concentrate.  That’s when I close the door.  My kids (and husband) know that when my office door is closed, I don’t want to be interrupted.The  important thing is to not overuse the closed-door time.  Keeping yourself locked away for three solid hours will annoy your household and tempt them to break the rule.  I try to set my closed-door time for an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening.
Take mini-writing breaks

No one says you have to write 1,000 words all at one sitting!  You can write those words at any speed you want.  I once heard the prolific author, Joyce Carol Oates, say that she writes her books sentence by sentence throughout the day.  And she still managed to put out over forty novels!Grab a quick writing break by keeping your computer on and your current work-in-progress booted up.  Or use a notebook to jot down ideas you have during the day.  You can even draft an outline for what you’ll write whenever you have a larger block of time later on.
Invest in a good set of earphones

Like I said, my house is small (or maybe it just seems that way this time of year), and I can hear everything from the TV downstairs to the conversation in the kitchen.  The best way for me to block out distraction is with a set of headphones and a playlist.Don’t like music?  Try listening to some ambient sounds like whale songs, rain, or traffic.
Make writing a priority

I’ll always put my family first, but I don’t feel guilty making time to write.  The other things – housework, laundry, and errands – can take a back burner.Make sure that you don’t waste precious writing time by answering e-mails or paying bills.  This is one time when multi-tasking isn’t an option.  Set your writing time and stick to it!

It is possible to write and raise kids.  It just takes a little planning, a little patience, and a lot of persistence.

Very Paranormal Holidays Blog Hop

I’m happy to be participating in the Very Paranormal Holidays Blog Hop.  Authors Kallysten and Tricia Schneider organized this Very Paranormal holidays Blog Hop to share their love for paranormal romance, help you discover new authors, win books, prizes… and maybe a brand new Kindle Fire!

The GRAND PRIZE is a Kindle Fire HD, 7″, wi-fi, 16GB (no ‘special offers’ aka ads). Giveaway is open internationally, with the only limitation that Amazon must sell/deliver Kindles to the participants’ countries. All details will be on the main hop page.  Just visit the hop home page to enter!

Side-by-side with that, I’m running my own little raffle.  The prize is a $15.00 Amazon gift card (delivered by e-mail).  What a great way for you to add to your Kindle library!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

');
// ]]>

Rules: The Grand Prize drawing is independent of my drawing.  To enter to win the Kindle Fire HD, you must visit the main hop page.  I am giving away one $15.00 Amazon gift card which will be sent via e-mail.  The winner will be drawn at random by Rafflecopter.  The winner will be notified by e-mail and will have seven days to reply.  If the winner does not reply, a new winner will be drawn.

Chick Lit for Christmas

Give the gift of romance

Trending now on Twitter…#ChickLit4Xmas!  What a fun way to window shop for some excellent chick lit titles.  There are plenty of terrific Carina UK books, and I’ve added Straight to Hell as well!

There’s even a Pinterest board dedicated to the event.  If you have a romance reader on your gift list, this is a perfect way to find that perfect gift.  Check out the titles below.



 

Not Your Average Snow Angel

Puts my old Spirograph drawings to shame!

Remember making snow angels when you were a kid?  Well, this is way cooler!

Artist Simon Beck uses the snow as his canvas and his feet like brushes to create the most spectacular winter artwork.  The artist says that he works from five to nine hours a day to make these geometric shapes.  He started creating these amazing designs as a way to get exercise.

By now, we in Detroit have gotten enough of the cold, white stuff to make me long for summer.  It doesn’t take much snow to make me hate it.  And knowing that I have at least three more months of it makes me frown.  Simon Beck, however, certainly makes me see snow in a new way.

 

I’ve Got Hobbit Fever

It’s true.  I’m counting down the days until the second Hobbit movie, The Desolation of Smaug, is released.

Critics say these movies are too long and dull.  I disagree.  To me, they’re eye candy of the best kind.  They bring me back to junior high school when I was reading The Lord of the Rings series for the first time.  It’s like walking backwards in time and into the vibrant imagination of a lonely seventh grader.

Plus, the cast is amazing.  I’m a huge fan of the BBC’s TV show, Sherlock, so seeing both Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch in the same movie thrills me.  Then there’s Ian McKellan whose Galdalf can give me the chills (it’s probably due to his amazing voice.)  Add in Aidan Turner (from the BBC show Being Human), and Orlando Bloom, and well…I did mention the eye candy, right?

Speaking of eye candy…  In case you missed it, here’s the trailer for the movie which is only three days away.  Like I said, I’m counting!

My Reading List – 2014

A cute craft idea, and a great idea for holiday gifts!

As much as it pains me to say it, I fell down on the ‘job’ in 2013.  Unfortunately, my  goal of reading sixty books this year is not going to happen.  GoodReads tells me that I’m fifteen books shy, but there’s no way I’ll be finishing five books a day from now until December 31.

I had an exceptionally good reading year in 2012 as I read sixty-one books.  The year before that, I read forty-eight.  So my piddly forty-one is a real letdown.

Maybe it’s time for me to be more realistic…

Although, looking back, I did read more pages than I had in the previous years.  Books like Lonesome Dove and The Windup Bird Chronicles were roughly a thousand pages each.  So I guess I can cut myself some slack.

Anyway, I ‘built’ a new Goodreads shelf in my bookcase: Books I want to read in 2014.  These are books I keep meaning to read, but have set aside for one reason or another.  If I can’t increase my books numbers in 2014, at least I can dust off my bookshelf.  You can see my books below.

What about you?  Any reading goals for 2014?  I’d love to hear about them.

Where in the World is Lilith Straight?

I ran across this fun website today.  It’s an interactive map where authors can place their book settings on a world-wide map, and readers can search for books by location.

So far, I’ve mapped out the Whitney Restaurant in Detroit, the major location for A Christmas Peril.  I’ll also be mapping the scenes from Straight to Hell.

This is one of those fun, time-suck websites.  Once you start looking at books from a region you’re interested in, you’ll get lost for sure!