Elyse Salpeter's Blog, page 23

Author Interview: Sherry Foley

Continuing my love of interviewing authors, this week I’d like to introduce everyone to Sherry Foley. She’s a romantic suspense writer who just published her first novel in February, 2012 called SWITCHED IN DEATH, with Winter Goose Publishing.

 Hailing all the way from Missouri, I give you Sherry!

Elyse: Please tell us about your book and what makes your novel different than others in your genre?

 Sherry: Switched in Death is about a serial killer who was brutally made fun of and bullied as a child. Now grown, the scars are still there. They retaliate in a unique way.  The mind, after all, can convince anyone they are justified in their actions.

Elyse: How did you come up with the idea for this book?

 Sherry: I remember at a very young age watching the news and seeing the stories about Charles Manson.  I was in awe of how he felt justified in his killing of another human being.  I’ve been equally intrigued by how fascinated people are with serial killers.  Why is that?  Manson has a Facebook with almost ten thousand followers!  I researched serial killers and fused some details into my story along with the bullying idea. 

Elyse: So you use research a lot. Does that mean you plot a lot or do you let your story surprise you?

Sherry: I always let my story surprise me. I’m a total panster. 

Elyse: Panster! What is that? I love that word.

Sherry: It’s someone who doesn’t plot, outline or storyboard-they just fly by the seat of their pants and make it up as they go along.  Panster.  I don’t like to know what happens before it does.

 Elyse: So you like to be surprised – that’s great. So tell me, what are your current projects?

Sherry: I’m working on a detective series that I’m quite excited about.   I’m on the first book in the series. Its location is in my hometown of Springfield, Missouri. There are a lot of underground tunnels which run all beneath the town and as a kid I played in some of those.  I’ve also named streets my best friends live on and places to eat where we hung out.  There was a murder that happened there when I was a kid and it has bothered me my whole life. This first story will have elements of it, but it will end very differently, I can promise you that. 

Elyse:  I heard your book, SWITCHED IN DEATH, was the topic of a few book clubs you went to – can you tell us about that experience – what was it like to hear them talking about your book and how did it make you feel?

Sherry: Incredible. I mean, I know my characters are real, but I didn’t know anyone else did. Ha!  I marveled at how the readers spoke about my characters, cared about them, and even quoted lines from the book. They were totally into it. They have all friended me on Facebook and kept up with my career. One club did an article on me for their town’s newspaper, both donated my book to their local library, and one had my book listed on the high school reading counts list! 

Sherry, that’s really exciting!  Thank you so much for letting me interview you and congratulations on your book.   If you’d like to learn more about Sherry Foley you may contact her here: 

Email: WordWeaver@kc.rr.comWordWeaver@kc.rr.com

Website: www.sherryfoley.com

Twitter: @sherry_foley

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sherry-...

 Happy Reading!

Pet Peeves while on a business trip…

I didn’t want this to be a rant about the trials and tribulations of traveling on a business trip, but I just came back from a few days in Florida, where I stayed in two separate hotels, and there were just so many ridiculous issues that I felt the need to post. So much time is spent on professionals getting paid to figure out how to make a visitors stay “pleasurable.” Well, how about we then start with pet peeve #1.

#1 ONGOING CONSTRUCTION ON A HOTEL SHOULD BE NOTED WHEN YOU MAKE YOUR RESERVATION! I was staying at a hotel in Miami one night and major renovations were occuring. In order to get into the hotel, you had to walk a very long way around the facility, up and down various stairs with your luggage, only to get to a small door that was heavy glass and you had to “pull out” to get your luggage in. The room itself I stayed in was at the other end of the complex, through hallways and other glass doors. No one was there to help or assist visitors and I can’t tell you how many times I got stuck in the door jams trying to juggle my laptop, a big purse and a large suitcase filled to the brim with sales materials.

#2 INTERNET ACCESS SHOULD BE FREE IN YOUR ROOMS.  One hotel gave it to me for free, the other wanted to charge me $12. TWELVE DOLLARS? I made a big stink at the front desk that this is ridiculous and should be free. They just stared at me like I had two heads and told me to use the communal business room, which I did. But, darned if they didn’t put a time limit on it. In the middle of one email the computer shut off and I had to sign back on and start all over again. Seriously.  

#3 ROOMS SHOULD NOT SMELL. EVER.  I had to change my room which was on the ground floor next to the pool. It was as if a pack of moldy trousers had taken residence there. I’m sure the cleaning staff noted this – the smell was very hard to miss. Granted, the room was clean, but I knew there was no way I was going to be able to endure the stench for the night. To their credit, they changed the room quickly (though I had to take all my luggage BACK to the front desk and through those blasted heavy glass doors noted in Pet Peeve #1)

#4 OUTLETS AND AC/HEAT SWITCHES SHOULD BE ACCESSIBLE AND EASY TO FIND.  When I got into the second room it was as if I had walked into a freezer. I must have spent ten minutes looking for the AC switch, which was hidden behind this “unit” which had a cover that had to be removed. In Florida they jack up the AC so high that when you walk into the room you’re afraid to change your clothes lest you get frostbite.

#5 THE WATER STOPPER SHOULD NOT BE ON THE BOTTOM OF THE TUB. Ok, this is a weird pet peeve, but I took a bath one night to chill out. I put on the hot water, unpacked and when I came back I realized the water was so hot that I couldn’t get my hand down to the stopper at the bottom of the tub to release the water to put cold water back in. I literally wrapped my hand in towels and plunged it in superfast to try to unstop it to let some of the water out.  It burned my hand. Never had that happen to me before but realized, “gee, it would be nice if the stopper were on the wall of the tub like I have at home rather than on the bottom.”

#6 STARBUCKS. Ok, this isn’t really a rant because it’s not anyone’s fault, but for this NY City girl, an accessible Starbucks is a must. I just can’t do Duncan Donuts or regular hotel coffee because with my lactose intolerance, I need soy milk. In this day and age, outside NY, everyone still looks at me askance if I request soy milk or a non-dairy creamer for my coffee. So, I think each hotel should have a listing and set of directions to the nearest Starbucks who accommodates me brilliantly.

Things I couldn’t complain about: Smoking (no one was smoking in the hotels at all, nice), free breakfast (one hotel had free breakfast, nice),  water and snacks were available in both rooms for free when I checked in. That was very nice and surprising.

Ok, I’m done ranting for the moment. Do you have any big pet peeves when you travel?

 

 

Six Sentence Sunday is here again!

Hi folks, and welcome back to Six Sentence Sunday! Today I’m giving you the first six lines of my psychological/paranormal thriller THE EXPERIMENT. Hope you enjoy!

“My name is Rachel Silverman and I am one of the Black Flag kidnap victims.” I pulled back from the microphone and squinted as hundreds of flashbulbs blinded me. The briefing room was packed with people, calling out requests, jostling for space.

A female CIA agent patted my arm reassuringly and I leaned in again, a hush settling through the room as everyone waited for me to speak again. I took a second to breathe and stared into the cameras, the voice recorders raised high to get every word. Everyone waiting to hear my story.

To learn more about Six Sentence Sunday and to read other amazing entries, please check out www.sixsunday.com. Thanks for coming and I’d love to hear from you!

Time to meet a fantastic YA novelist, Ann Swann!

The Phantom Pilot, by Ann Swann

I would like to dedicate this week’s blog to introducing everyone to a fantastic young adult author named Ann Swann. One of the things I love about her work is that it’s something I can share with my nearly eleven year old daughter. So many times we find YA books and movies that say they are in that category, but really kind of “skirt the line.” Ann’s new novel, THE PHANTOM PILOT, is exciting, clean, fun, even scary and when I asked my daughter what she thought about it when she finished, she said one word: “Amazing!” I wholeheartedly agree. Well written with strong characters, I highly recommend it for those who love YA or want to get started on one. 

So, without further ado, hailing all the way from far West Texas (I think Texas is far for anyone from any other state, to be honest) I give you Ann Swann…

Elyse: Please tell us a little about your book, about the time period you chose and what makes your novel different than others in your genre?

Ann: The Phantom Pilot is a novella that originated as a short story. I entered the original story (The Escort) in the annual fiction contest hosted by my writer’s group, The Abilene Writer’s Guild, and it won first place. After that, I began to send it here and there to see if it could be published. In the meantime, my Muse decided I wasn’t quite finished with Jase and Stevie, so I wrote a wraparound story which planted the characters firmly in the time period of my youth. Most of the setting is based upon an idealized version of my West Texas hometown. After the story reached novella length, I came across a small mention in the AWG monthly newsletter which said that Cool Well Press was accepting manuscripts. I had met Denise Vitola, the editor, at an AWG workshop so I was intrigued. Since I hadn’t heard from any of the three places where I had submitted the short story, I sent the novella to Denise and she wrote back within a couple of weeks saying she liked it and wanted to publish it. Naturally, I was thrilled, and then two of the other places I’d submitted it to (months earlier) emailed and wanted to publish the short story. Isn’t that always the way? I think the time period of the late 60s, early 70s, is a little different for YA books right now. It’s nostalgic, and a bit historical, you know, set against the back drop of real events. Of course it’s also a ghost story, so there’s that . . .

Elyse: Ahh, a ghost story, that does give the book an intriguing angle. How did you come up with the idea in the first place?

Ann: A small plane was flying too low over my house one night; I imagined what would happen if it crashed and I had to go out alone and see about the pilot. I don’t know why I made the lead character a teenaged boy. I think my Muse did that when I wasn’t looking.

Elyse: I love that you have both strong female and male leads in your book.  The kid’s personalities and characters are really developed and complex and stand out nicely. So tell me, do you specifically target YA when you get an idea for a story? Do you find it easier to write to that genre?

Ann: I don’t think about it. I just write whatever comes. I know I’ve had more people interact with me on my YA stuff, so I guess it must be easier for me.

Elyse: We all have other writers we look up to. If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor and why?

Ann: Only one? Ray Bradbury, no, Edgar Allan Poe, no, Stephen King…aww, I give up. All of them!

Elyse: That was tough, wasn’t it? I think reading other people’s work shapes us and helps us in so many ways with our own stories. In fact, I always think that our mentors have special places in our futures as writers, as well. So, I’m curious, what are your current projects?

Ann: I’m working on the edits for the sequel to The Phantom Student, Book Two in The Phantom Series. It will be published around Halloween.

Elyse: A sequel… excellent and congratulations! So tell me, besides writing, tell us some of the other things you love to do.

Ann: I love to draw, and sketch, and play word games like Scrabble, Boggle, and Words With Friends (on my phone). I also adore live music, and if I don’t get my evening walk in every night, I get extremely cranky. Then of course, there’s reading–books are stacked in every room, begging to be read (and my Kindle overfloweth). In addition, my hubby and I go to the movies almost every week. We also like to jump in the car and drive. We want to do both coasts, just drive and drive, and stop when we see something interesting. Then there are the kids and grandkids . . . we’re headed to a junior rodeo this weekend in Oklahoma where four of the grandkids live. This rodeo is for toddlers and up. Should be interesting.

 

So, a big thank you to Ann for allowing us to take a peek into her writing world. If you’d like to found out about Ann’s current works, here’s what she has going on:

Check out her most recent short fiction in The Rusty Nail, at www.rustynailmag.com , The Soul Gardener, in the Cool Well Press anthology, Timeless: http://tinyurl.com/cav45q2, and a new self published pseudo-zombie gem called Chems at http://tinyurl.com/cj64sd8

The Phantom Pilot is available at www.CoolWellPress.com or at Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/6uk5cp2

To contact Ann directly feel free to check out www.annswann.com, www.Annswann.blogspot.com, or follow on Twitter.com/@ann_swann or on www.Facebook.com/annswann.authorfanpage

 

Six Sentence Sunday!

Hi everyone, here are the first six sentences of my Young Adult fantasy, THE WORLD OF KAROV, the first book in a planned trilogy. Books one and two are already written.

Chapter One

Four hundred years ago….

     It was the smell that woke me. The cloying, metallic scent of an animal when it’s been run over by a wagon and left to die in its own filth on a dirt road riddled with the excrement of horses. Why it was in my room terrified me.

     It was late; so late the hens were still fast asleep and the insects had ceased their incessant chattering. Even the passing horse carts, bringing their furs and goods between the villages, had gone to bed for the night.

     I couldn’t bring myself to open my eyes, fearful of what I would find.

 

Please feel free to visit www.sixsunday.com to read all the other entries and enter yourself next week! Enjoy and feel free to comment if you’d like!

 

The question of schooling….

No one likes to hear they didn’t make it into the college of their choice. It’s like a hard, sharp, kick to your gut. Now imagine when you’re not 18 years old and you’re talking about your 10 yr old with special needs and you wished he had gotten into one school but was rejected because they just can’t accommodate his behavioral issues? It can tear at your heart. My little guy is one of the most inquisitive, smartest and funniest people I know, but with a complete inability to follow rules and do what his teachers ask. And please understand, I’m not a “goggle mom,” with blinders on with regards to my son. As wonderful as he is, I admit he can also be excessively difficult, have a one track mind and very intolerant. I don’t envy his teachers, frankly. Can you imagine having a boy in your class who questions every single thing you say?

For mom’s with kids on the spectrum, this is possibly all too familiar. My son wants to control every single aspect of learning each day. If his teacher wants him to write a short story a page long, he’ll suggest he write a poem instead. If she suggests only doing numbers 1 – 8 on the math page, he’ll say he wants to do numbers 9 – 20 instead. He’ll roll his eyes if other kids have a hard time reading out loud, and gets really upset if he can’t discuss his knowledge about quarks and atoms or Schlessinger’s Cat theory (yes, an upper level physics concept) when the class is learning the basics about space exporation or whatever other science topic is going on. But please don’t ask him to multiply a few equations – it’s like you stuck him with a pin or something the way he carries on. If he’s not interested, he objects to even trying. 

So, that leaves us with “how to school this little guy?” It’s hard. If he weren’t so argumentative, he’d be mainstreamed with his twin sister going to middle school. He’d have so many wonderful classes and electives to choose from, he’d be with his old friends. But now he’s back into a much more restrictive environment, with kids who aren’t exactly peer models and it just breaks my heart. He’s this wealth of potential and I’m flummoxed on how to best harvest it. There just aren’t enough schools out there for behavioral kids high on the spectrum. I never thought that would be our issue. He’s too high functioning, but unable to make it through a regular class, so he needs this environment. We’ve looked at private schools as well, but unless they have the ability to work with very reluctant learners, it’s not the right place.

My hopes for him are still strong. He seems to be a wiz on the computer. Am I crazy to purchase him a laptop of his own and add photo shop so he can start creating movies? He’s in love with the Cyriak videos and wants to learn how to make them. It’s like I’m trying to think about what we can do for him outside of school so that down the road he can attain anything he wants. Of course, he might be up all night playing Kirby’s Mass Attack with that same computer.

Maybe it’s a maturity thing? This morning my daughter stormed into our bedroom at 6:20 am. My son was apparently already downstairs on the Wii and the sound woke her up. Now, he already got dressed for school and the sound was “lowish” so he tried to make sure he did things right (even though there is no Wii usually allowed that early in the morning). You run this weird tightwire of getting him to be self sufficient, but appropriate.

I guess it all comes down to just taking it one step at a time. One day at a time and celebrating every little tiny milestone. And one day, who knows, maybe he’ll be back with his sister in school. And maybe he won’t.

Time will tell.

Six Sentence Sunday

This is my Six Sentence Sunday excerpt of FLYING TO THE LIGHT. The boys are on the run…

 

Day 4—Thursday, 5:00 a.m.

He felt old. Not the kind of old where someone simpers along in a blessed Alzheimer's oblivion and nurses tend to your every need, but the kind of old that nightmares bring. The old that if he closed his eyes to go to bed for the night, there would be the lingering fear he might not wake up in the morning—that this might be his last cognizant night on Earth.

Michael was so terrified he couldn't breathe. His safe, little world had shifted out of its comfortable orbit the moment his parents were kidnapped, propelling him to places he never dreamed imaginable. Suddenly, there was horror everywhere and nothing was what it appeared to be.

 

FLYING TO THE LIGHT is available on Amazon, Cool Well Press and on Barnes and Noble

 

http://www.sixsunday.com/

Flowers and Patience…

Flowers and Patience

It's March 18th and it's 60 degrees outside in New York. While that might not be such a stretch in many parts of the country, here we could just as easily be having an icestorm or have three feet of snow on the ground. But yet, with the warm weather for the past few weeks, the crocusses are in deep bloom, the daffodils have come up and now the hyacinths and tulips are making an appearance, weeks before they normally would. My son and I went to the nursery and we simply couldn't wait. We had to buy flowers and we had to plant them, the risk of a late season storm at the back of my mind. Not that it stopped me. We were impatient to plant them and so we did.

It's almost as if the world is as impatient as people these days. No one has time to wait for anything. If I go to a fast food restaurant and my food isn't literally on my tray in minutes, I find myself huffing and puffing and staring at the clock. As if the people didn't physically have to make my food. If someone in front of me in the car lane moves too slowly and I miss the green light, I'll find myself seriously miffed that I have to wait when I could have been speeding along if they'd just moved a little quicker. If my internet connection slows down, it's as if the world has ended.

I realize that it's not just me and the flowers that need to slow down. It's the world in general. Maybe it's because I live in New York and I have a different perception of things. We walk fast here. We talk fast. Everything is quick. Maybe I just have to remember that there are parts of the world where it's okay to take a breath. That it's okay if my dinner doesn't arrive in a certain alotted amount of time. And, it's really okay if I miss that light. I think we have to remember that just living our lives is what's important and rushing through it at every moment only means we'll miss something along the way.

So, now I'll take a breath, try to slow down for the evening and remember that there are things you just can't rush. And those are the things I really want to savor.

Author Interview: Mr. Frank Tuttle

As everyone knows, one of my deep passions is writing, but along with that comes a love of books and the people who write them. When I read a novel which moves me so deeply, I find myself staring at the words in amazement, in awe that the author came up with this idea and presented it so beautifully.

I thought I'd start using this blog to occasionally share my love of writing with other fellow authors who have the ability to move people with words.  Learning about them, for me, is incredibly interesting and I hope you find it as fascinating as I do to imagine how these wonderful people come up with such incredible ideas.

So, with that, hailing from Oxford Mississippi, the hometown of Ole Miss, I'd like to introduce a wonderful author, Mr. Frank Tuttle!

Frank is a fantasy writer of the very popular Markhat the finder series —THE MISTER TROPHY, DEAD MAN'S RAIN, THE CADAVER CLIENT, HOLD THE DARK, THE BANSHEE'S WALK and THE BROKEN BELL. His newest fantasy series, starting with "All the Paths of Shadow", published by Cool Well Press, is out now and available from Amazon, B&N and Cool Well Press. 

Please tell us about your book and what makes your novel different than others in your genre?

My book, 'All the Paths of Shadow,' is a fantasy in which a very bright young woman named Meralda finds herself in the middle of one of those moments that make history. Meralda is the Royal Thaumaturge to the Kingdom of Tirlin. She's not only the youngest person to ever take that title, she's also the first woman to do so. She's under a lot of pressure even before the real trouble starts, just having to prove every day that she earned her title.

Meralda is a bookish sort who would be perfectly content to stay locked up in the Royal Laboratory all day, tinkering with her magical instruments and doing arcane research. But when the book opens, she's been ordered by King Yvin to move a certain huge tower's shadow so he can deliver a speech from its base without being in the dark. Meralda is annoyed at being forced to undertake such a ridiculous task, but he is the King, so she proceeds. Before long, she discovers that the old stories about the tower being haunted are true, and that her meddling may have awakened an ancient evil she doesn't think she can defeat.

Throw in the arrival of a mysterious shipload of foreigners and the commencement of the Fifth-Year Accords, which bring all the Realms together, and poor Meralda is indeed in a mess.

Why is my book different? Well, for one thing, 'All the Paths of Shadow' is a sort of anti-quest fantasy novel. You won't see a tiny band of misfits charge off in pursuit of some magical dingus that can slay the Generic Dark Lord and save the day. Meralda has a job to do, and she stays to see it done. Too, Tirlin is much more cosmopolitan than most fantasy settings. Meralda drinks coffee, reads newspapers, takes horse-drawn cabs to work, and even watches dirigibles soar past overhead.

How did you come up with the idea for this book?

It all started with a philodendron plant I used to keep on a table. That plant became the inspiration for Mug, Meralda's best friend in the book.  Mug is a magically animated dandyleaf plant, who has twenty-nine mobile eyes and the ability to speak. Most of the wizard types in the books I'd been reading were all power-mad old men, so I created Meralda, a studious young woman who loves magic as a field of scientific inquiry, not as a means to power.

So I had Meralda in mind, and Mug, and Tirlin and the Realms just sort of grew up around them. I wanted something different from the stock fantasy kingdoms, with their dirt roads and high keeps and thundering around everywhere on horseback. So Tirlin was born, and if I had to pick a fantasy world to be stuck in, it's the one I'd choose. First, because they have those two essentials for life, donuts and coffee, and second, because they have running water and flush toilets. And good restaurants. So yes, I traded Elves and wood-sprites for cafes and pastries, and I still think I made the right decision.

Do you find writing for the YA audience easier or harder? Have you always written YA and why? 

I've written several short stories which wound up being YA stories. My Wistril the Wizard series is 3 stories (one of them a novella) long, and the Jere the Harper tales are YA too. I didn't intentionally write them that way. I enjoy that kind of fantasy fiction — by 'that kind' I mean a sort of straightforward tale of magic without graphic violence, sex, or language. Maybe it's my homage to Tolkien and Fletcher Pratt and L. Sprague de Camp and Poul Andersen. I do have darker, more adult stuff, but even it's pretty mild by modern standards.  It's actually easier for me to write in YA mode; I'm not really that bloodthirsty as an author. I don't write 'down' or write specifically to kids — I just don't include scenes where someone gets dismembered by a lusty werewolf. I'm not interested in creating that kind of experience.

Do you plot? Outline? What's your writing process?

I tend to plot and outline short stories more than I do full-blown novels. 'All the Paths of Shadow' was originally plotted out on a long dry-erase storyboard. I don't think I'll do that again for the sequel, although I will have a good idea of how events unfold before I ever get started.

My writing process is pretty simple. Go to work, come home, help out with the cooking and cleaning (yes, I do, every day), take care of the dogs, and then head up to my PC in the study for whatever writing I can wring out of my head. I usually sweep the study with Billy Idol blasting on the stereo, and then I turn the music off and start pounding away at the keyboard. And tweeting. Can't avoid the Twitter!

What are your current projects?

Right now I am maybe halfway done with a new Markhat novel entitled 'Brown River Queen.' The instant that's done, I'll be starting the sequel to 'All the Paths of Shadow.' It will be called 'All the Turns of Light.'

Tell me something about yourself others might not know?

Hmm. Well, I own and ride a motorcycle, I do some amateur paranormal investigating now and then, and I've built a lot of furniture, and even a couple of houses. Seriously, did all the framing, roofing, drywall, plumbing, all of it. Grew up among carpenters, and a lot of it stuck with me. I also live on a small corner of the old family farmland, which proves once and for all I lack any sort of ambition whatsoever.

Too, I am the undead spawn of Count Dracula himself, but don't print that, because the Van Helsings are still trying to track me down and they tend to kick in doors and tromp dirt all over my carpet. (sorry Frank, had to print it – it was too good to keep a secret!)

Frank, thank you so much for allowing us to peek into your writing world. For those of you who would like to learn more, please feel free to connect with Frank at his webpage, blog, on Facebook and Twitter at:

Webpage: www.franktuttle.com

Blog: http://frank-tuttle.blogspot.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/franktuttle

Twitter: @frank_tuttle

 

It’s the Little Things….

My first major 2012 challenge has been met. I went to my Tae Kwon Do tournament and survived! I spoke to so many people at the event who told me they wished they’d had the guts to compete, but they were just too scared. It made me realize there are so many aspects of our lives which are scary, but if we don’t conquer our fears, we’ll miss some of the most incredible experiences there are. For me, competing in this tournament meant getting up in front of a group of judges, being in front of hundreds of people in the stands and competing in forms and sparring against people with far more experience than I have. I may have placed 5th (out of 6 people) in forms, but guess what? I landed all my jumps, I remembered the entire thing, I did my best and I even got a “thanks for participating medal!” It’s the little things. In sparring, I was up against a woman who I have sparred in my class – a black belt who is extremely good. I’ve never been able to land a punch on her in class, but guess what? I was able to hold my own in the ring and got some points and I’m super happy. I didn’t win, but I did get this cool trophy! Again, it’s the little things and I did it and I just may compete again one day.

So, what’s in store that scares me next for 2012? Well, author discussions on my book. I have one coming up in my daughter’s class in just two days and I’m supposed to talk about the editing process, how long and hard I had to work to get this book published, etc… they’re going to have a Q&A and I’ve heard 10 year olds can be brutal, so I’m a little nervous. Then comes a much larger venue at the local library on February 29th. I do presentations and group meetings for my day job all the time, but when it’s a personal effort, it’s somehow tougher. But, I’m sure when it’s done I’ll be better for the experience.

I used to think “grand scale.” My life would fit into compartments of success… we’d have a house, cars, the kids would be in this class, this sport, have these many friends, fit into this group, everyone excelling in everything. But reality is that life should be about the little things. For me, knowing my son had a great day at school, knowing my daughter stood up to a bully and feels great about herself, knowing I’m providing for my family the best way I know how. Adding all the little things up makes that “grand scale” map so much richer. Life might not be exactly how I pictured it would be, but it’s our lives and we should relish each aspect of it. So, I’ve decided to live with the little things, one step at a time, one attempt at a time.

So please, tell my YOUR next step – I’d love to hear!