Curtiss Ann Matlock's Blog, page 31
October 17, 2013
Getting Started
Reblogged from Chronicles of the Scribe:
One of the most frequently asked questions I encounter is how do I go about planning a book, outlining plot, designing characters, etc.
There are specific tactics for those tasks, of course, but no matter how methodical, disciplined, and professional I try to be, I still make sure I allow time for thinking. Just thinking, sifting, mentally evaluating, letting my story sense guide me toward what's right and what's not quite there.
October 15, 2013
Sweet Olive and Snakes and the New Day
It is pitch dark still. I hear the rare call of a hoot owl in the distance. And the sweet olive is blooming! The thick, sweet scent wafts past…
This post was interrupted because the girls in the henhouse started making noise. I grabbed a flashlight and shovel and went to look, but I saw nothing amiss. I had left the light on all night by mistake, and I guess it made them get up earlier than normal. Or maybe they saw a snake. On Sunday afternoon, my sister-in-law and I heard them making noise a...
October 10, 2013
The Loves of Ruby Dee on Kindle sale–$1.99!
The Loves of Ruby Dee is on sale on Kindle through the holiday weekend–$1.99. Ruby Dee comes to a remote Oklahoma ranch to tend a quarrelsome old man, and ends up captivating the hearts of three rugged men. But only one will be able to claim her. 5-Stars!
Filed under: Books Tagged: author Curtiss Ann Matlock, Books, Oklahoma, reading, women's fiction
October 8, 2013
The Power of a Hug
I don’t know about you where you are, but I not only a sweater and cotton blanket around my shoulders, but socks and shoes this morning on the porch. Oh, it is lovely! Quiet, even the crickets have lowered their tune to a whisper. All the quiet causes the bubbling ponds to sound loud. There is something squeaking faintly now and in the bush. The cool air is soft and sweet, and it is as if the world savors the peace of this precious moment before dawn. I have the urge to lift my tea mug to Mot...
October 7, 2013
Fall!
Still on sale on Kindle! $1.99 through Wednesday
Fall has come this far south! Oh, it is delicious on the porch, in the dark, the cats chasing crunchy leaves that drift down. Crickets sing low, and for some reason the pond gurgling seems louder. The scents are wet and earthy, brought by the breezes that stray from the tops of the trees and pass along the porch. I have on a sweater and a throw around my shoulders. No bare-footin’ this morning.
By now you know that the tropical storm Karen was a...
October 4, 2013
Love in a Small Town– on Kindle sale $1.99!
I am preparing for the weekend deluge from tropical storm Karen. I went grocery shopping at Walmart this morning after taking Little Dude to school. There was about two feet of empty space on the shelf where Vienna sausage was supposed to be. I guess lots of people like it. I got the most important items: gluten-free cookies, jams, and chocolate dusted almonds. Yes, of course I got water. Now I’m going to have to get grain for my chickens.
If you are in an area of storms this weekend– there ar...
October 3, 2013
Listening to Big Band Music on the Porch
Same temperature as yesterday, yet feels cooler. An example of feelings are not facts? Barefootin’ and turned the fan on against the mosquitoes and gnats. The pole light on the other side of the drive shines through the old pecan that is getting sparse with leaves now. It’s funny, but on the porch there is little smell, but when I step out into the yard, I smell a sweet dampness of fall.
And guess what– I have discovered I Heart Radio! Right now I have Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra playing fr...
October 2, 2013
Keep it Simple, Sweetheart
It is hot, do you believe it? Hot. I have the fan blowing to dispel the heavy air. There’s a golden, ethereal color to the light. Quite magical. Must be the storm clouds bending the early morning sunlight. It is spilled down into the courtyard and out over the pasture. I enjoyed watching a silly squirrel scamper around the gnarled branches of the pecan tree. His tail went like a propeller blade. I was amazed how he could go up onto the tips of the thinnest branches, plucking nuts from the lea...
October 1, 2013
Looking for the Good
The deep dark has lifted. Earlier I heard what I think is a loon again, its gentle ghostly call. There’s a pond down the road, perhaps it stops in there. This is wintering grounds for the loon. Winter coming on slowly, fall very gentle thus far. Still in bare feet. the air soft and perfectly still this moment, while birds begin to wake and sing, the earth to come alive.
I am resisting coming awake and alive this morning. I would like it to stay dim like this, quiet, and to be able to sit here...
September 30, 2013
A Good Day for Writing
Good Monday morning! I was wide awake extra early, time for curling in the porch chair, reading, journalling, and a second cup of tea, praise God! I heard the sweet patter of light rain on the roof when I awoke. It is so dark still, and the computer screen shining in my eyes, that all I can see beyond the porch is the pole lamp on the driveway and sparkles on the leaves. Crickets are giving a low hum, otherwise so very quiet. Oh, a rainy day! A very good day for writing, or any art. I know I’...
