Sharla Lovelace's Blog, page 22

Revisions, dreams, and potato chips

Finished editor revisions this weekend…YAY!!!!  HAPPY DANCE!  Well…maybe it's too soon for the happy dance.  I finished them, I sent them, with a note that I took out all 543 "glances" and 88 "eyerolls'.  Ok, that's an exaggeration, but truly, once I did a search on those, it was scary.  Editor Extraordinaire (EE) thought so too, as she pointed out many of them (hence, my curiosity to search).  But as I was saying, the revisions may be sent, but until EE does the sign of the cross on them, they aren't final.

And I'm playing with a new character the last few days.  From a distance…she hasn't come to introduce herself yet…but I'm hopeful.  Since what I was doing for book two tanked, I'm trying not to push this one.  Trying to let it come to me with its magic and settle in all happy and content.

"Trying" being the key word there.  Trying to let it come to me while actually saying "come on, already, don't be so freakin' poky!"

In the meantime, I had two dreams last night.  One that I was driving a boat that became a roller coaster.  The second was that I had a booksigning for THE REASON IS YOU and nobody showed up.  Want to guess which one was more horrifying? 

*wide-eyed stare*

Yeah.  Let's all hold hands (or here, just hold mine) and think positive thoughts that that won't happen.

Okay, now I have to go do the day job, so my family can keep eating me out of house and home in potato chips, and then the grocery store for more chips, and then I'll have my bootcamp workout and laundry and dinner…and then maybe play with that character again.  If she'll quit being so elusive.

What are your plans today?  Well, you can go over to Women Unplugged and read Christy's take yesterday on dogs and their people.  Too cute.

Then what?

Tagged: characters, dreams, editor, new writing, real life, revisions, romance, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, womens fiction

What would you do?

In the course of my day so far today, at work at my day job and worrying about editor revisions for book one and new ideas for book two and the workout program we have to do tonight and whether my daughter is keeping up with her homework and whether we have milk and what we need to do before the parade I just found out is this weekend since my daughter didn't inform me… (stopping to inhale…..)    I've come to realize something important. 

I need to be rich.

I mean, not the filthy stinking buy-diamond-encrusted-dog-bowls kind of rich, but the kind of rich that warrants the following:

Quitting my day job—-do I really need to explain?  Yeah, I didn't think so.
A maid—-because with my full time job and after work responsibilities, there is not enough of me to write AND do laundry AND clean the house.  And I'm tired of the dirt and the clutter.
A cook—-same reason as above…and they would then clean the stovetop or delegate to said maid.
A personal shopper—-ditto ditto ditto…and maybe between this person and the cook, my family and I would stand half a chance to eat something healthy and not in a box.
An office—-granted I sort of semi-have one.  See Women Unplugged post here for details on that.  But I'm talking about a real one.  With an airtight/noiseproof seal and a keypad that only I can unlock so I can shut myself in there.
A personal trainer—-so I can stay in shape when I actually make it out of that awesome office.

That's the kind of rich I'm talking about.  I'd be satisfied with that!  I mean, I'm not talking about needing a cluster of clones…which would be cool too, but that would be getting greedy.  And maybe a little creepy.  And possibly confusing for my husband. 

But the little band of helpers I'm asking for?  Especially the MAID?  Oh my goodness, I could handle that.

So….if you were suddenly rich, what kind of rich would you want?  And what would you do with it?

 

 

Tagged: if I were rich, list of wants, maid, office, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, women unplugged

Random and rewriting and Cheers!

Oh the craziness today.  And pardon the ADHD randomness, but I'm pinging everywhere.

Do you feel it?  It's raining down on me…okay not REALLY raining down on me…although it was supposed to because Tropical Depression 35…(13?…33?…one of those "3″ numbers) was headed our way.  Now it's going more north, which is good for us, not good for Louisiana, but I would like a band or two of the wet stuff to stray off our way.  My grass is dead.

Not that it is gone…it's dead but the weeds are still green.  They are like alligators and cockroaches.  They never die out.

I have to hit the road for Friday night football tonight (go Indians!) because darling daughter marches at halftime.  And while we make the hour and a half trek, I'll be working on a rewrite of book two.  In my head. 

And hopefully retain those thoughts and not spew them out with the yelling I'm going to do at tonight's game. 

Everyone have a wonderful holiday weekend!  I'm going to do nothing but write like a coffee-crazed wild-eyed woman.   *holds up coffee cup*  Cheers!

 

Tagged: friday night football, random, rewrites, romance, sharla lovelace, the reason is you

The Back-To-School Train

The Back To School train.

Yeah…. 

Depending upon your perspective on those words, they can make you breathe a sigh of relief or pull your hair out.

I know some fortunate people who don't work outside the home, that do that "sighing" thing.  They are tickled to death to have the house to themselves again, free of chaos and noise. 

I'm not one of those people.  I work full time, write every other possible moment, do laundry/cooking/cleaning (ok not so much) during those same moments.  So back to school time is a nightmare for me.  Summer is the one time I DON'T have to worry about homework being done, projects being forgotten/late/researched, after-school practices, meetings, tests, football games (see prev post), little sis gifts, and grades.   Back To School is a train that roars loud through the whole first semester.

Not that I should have to worry about all that…my daughter is a junior…but I do.  She doesn't.  She doesn't because she knows that I do.  LOL.  If it were up to her, life would float by and hand her what she needs when she needs it, and it doesn't seem to matter how many times that concept slaps her down…she doesn't change.   She wants to…I'll give her that.  She always has good intentions.  But that cable that connects intentions to actuality?  Yanno…the red cable with the yellow dots…not the black one.  Yeah, that one.  She's missing it. 

I give her journals to keep track of things because the Momma Can't Keep Doing This train is about to derail,

but they stay blank or full of notes (to friends, not classes) or pictures she's doodled or story ideas she has (she's a writer too).

But the Momma Can't Keep Doing This train isn't loud enough, apparently.  I'm wondering if the Your Car Stays Home Give Me Your Keys train will be louder in a few months.  

What are your thoughts?  Are your kids self-sufficient in that respect, or do you have your own trains to manage?

 

Tagged: back to school, kids, responsibility, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, writing

New blog post over at my new website!!

I'm in the process of moving my blogging over to my new website, and I'm hoping you will follow me!  I will eventually get messages out to each one of my followers, in case you miss this, but if you do see it, please come see me at http://www.sharlalovelace.com/, and click on the blog page.  Hope to see you over there!!

Today is about the phenomenon called Friday Night Football.  Yep...

Sharla

Are You Ready for some Football??

I have to give kudos to Tracy Solheim over at Women Unplugged today.  She brought up a great post.  Friday night football.

For those not in the South, you may not be familiar with this phenomenon.  It's a crazed but controlled and expected type of chaos that has an entire town donning the team colors and trotting enmass to stadiums from Texas to Georgia. 

You don't have a choice really.  I think it's in the embryotic fluid before we are born.  You just know. 

My particular hometown is in Texas…where football ranks right up there with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.   

And I'm talking high school football, in a town that bleeds purple and white. People have season tickets that they bought in 1940, and have passed down their seats to their kids and grandkids. No one gives them up. You go to games on Friday night from the time you are 2 till you are 92.  Fire hydrants are either purple or white.  

Our team is the Indians, and the fight song is Cherokee played by the marching band in a marching "I"  which has been a tradition since the 50′s, and there are custom car horns made to play it. When the team makes it to the playoffs, the entire town hits the road. Small children have the obligatory cheerleader/indianette/indian spirit costumes on, their faces painted, watching their heroes of choice and dreaming of the day it will be them.

     

I grew up in this town, lived around the country, and then came back, and I can honestly say I've never seen this fever anywhere else.  There was even a book written about our school and this tradition!!!

 "Down The Trails of Victory"  (which are words in the fight song)

Do you live somewhere that has over the top traditions like this?  Tell me!

Tagged: football, friday night football, port neches indians, sharla lovelace, the reason is you, tracy solheim, women unplugged

What Would You Put In The Box?

Random question day ... because I am so scattered right now and that's how my brain is pinging...all over the place!!  

So...



 What three items would you put in a time capsule right now?  Not from your kids or about your kids...that's too easy.  What three items that define YOUR individual life would you put in there?  And where would you hide it?











And what would the box look like?  ; )


 Queue "Jeopardy" music...
; )

Love, Ghosts, and Lizards over at Women Unplugged!

Today I'm blogging over at Women Unplugged, so head that way!  I'll be waiting for ya!!

I'll be back in here tomorrow and Friday.   Have a great one...

Introducing...Women Unplugged!!!

A quick note today to tell you about an awesome new blog I'm co-authoring with five other fabulous women writers!  It's called Women Unplugged !

The contributors are myself, Dianne Venetta, Patti Yager Delagrange, Christy Hayes, Tracy Solheim, and Sheila Seabrook.

It's up officially this week, so please come visit!!

Six authors, six opinions, tons of fun!

Saturday Southern Comfort -- Comfort Food!

It's Saturday Southern Comfort day....that day of guilty pleasures...

Today where I live it's raining...finally...and it's one of those dark dreary days with the constant sound of water falling steadily outside the window.  I'm sitting in the recliner with the Old Lady Dog and a cup of coffee...

Thinking about food.

Because something about rainy days make me lazy and make me crave bad things.  Not that I can eat them...I'm on a diet...but I can sure think about them. LOL.  Rainy Saturdays give me thoughts of...

[image error] Nachos... 










Cheese Dip... [image error]

[image error] Warm chocolate chip cookies...







and cold Ice Cream.... [image error]

And although there is no pic for it, my dad's old standby for late at night...buttered bread with sugar on top, dipped in thick cane syrup.  Mmmmmm...brings back yummy memories...


Okay... so what comfort food do rainy days bring your thoughts to???  Share!!