Kate Collins's Blog, page 163

So…you write books

Duffy BrownConsignment Shop MysteriesDemise in Denim  April, 2015
One Writer’s Journey…or I always have to write something on a steamed mirror
Maybe that was my first clue that I wanted to be a writer for real.
Or maybe it was that I always thought in stories. Not long ago I asked my husband...So, husband, what kind of stories do you think about? I got this What the heck are you talking about look so I explained...You know, like if you’re board or on a plane and have a little down time, what kind of stories do you make up?
Well, dang, you mean not everyone thinks in stories? I had no idea.
And as long as I can remember I would mentally rewrite books. In first grade if Dick and Jane didn’t do what I thought they should I made up a new story. If I didn’t like an ending in other books I’d rewrite the ending to what I thought it should be and if a character did something stupid, I rewrote him/her.
Then there was the time when I couldn’t find a book I liked and my daughter who was in the eighth grade at St. Andrew’s School tossed me a well-worn, dog-eared Harlequin. A romance? Who reads these things? I read it in desperation and loved it! Only after I finished did my daughter tell me it was the student’s supplement to their sex-ed class! I should have known since all the good stuff was underlined in red!  
I was hooked on romance and I started writing my own stories. At first it was just for me and then it got to be more. Getting that more published took eight years but it has been so worth the effort. Writing is my thing. I can’t imagine not writing. It’s a big part of who I am.
The very best part of writing is the people I’ve met along the way, editors, agents, publicists, other authors and the readers. When I needed a doctor in NYC for my daughter who lives there (and I live in Cincy) I put out a mass mailing asking for doctor references. So many people wrote back with recommendations and the gals from Romantic Times even offered to take my daughter to lunch and be with her if she needed support.
Now that is friendship!
The worse part of writing of course is the rejections of projects you really want to write and no one wants to buy. But the best outweighs the worse by a ton.  My writer’s journey has been like a roller coaster with ups and downs and lots of twists and turns but it is one hell of a ride and I cannot imagine life without a contract and a title and deadline. The special world of books is exciting and challenging and it’s exactly where I want to be.

 

Spring Is Coming

by Maggie Sefton



The garden patio at the back of the Lambspun shop in Fort Collins.


Okay---you folks have heard me mention how mild our weather in Northern Colorado
was during most of  February and now into March.  Our mountains and ski resorts got lots of snow which is great for them,   but along the Front Range of the Rockies (where Denver and Fort Collins both are located) our weather  stayed warmer and milder.  We had a nice snow early in February and that's the last we've seen here in Fort Collins.  Believe it or not, we actually could use some rain or snow because it would bring much needed moisture.  I've already run the garden hose on several of my rose bushes and large plants like the Peony.

Because of all that warmer weather and the bright sunshine which comes every day, many of our  trees have already budded out and dropped seed pods all over the yards and patios.  Leaves should start to appear by the end of the month.  :)

And, I've sneezed a few times, which confirms that Spring Stuff is floating in the air.  :)  I don't have big problems with allergies which I can counteract with the little over-the-counter pink pills, so I'm not complaining.  I've had scores of friends who have BIG problems with all sorts of allergies, so their lives are seriously affected.  I get to spend most afternoons sitting outside with my laptop writing away.


Crabapple tree in Vienna, Virginia last spring.


Of course, a brief cold front could (and often will) blow across the mountains and drop some light snow in the last of March and during April.   Not a problem.  With our bright Colorado sunshine every day, those spring snows literally melt away in a day.

What's your weather like now?  Still cold and filled with snow?  Or, are you seeing hints of an early Spring, too.

Rescued Dogs

by Kate Collins

To celebrate National Puppy Day, the Cozy Chicks are honoring rescue dogs. In my Flower Shop Mystery series, Abby's dog Seedy was rescued from a shelter before she could be euthanized. Abby hadn't planned on having a dog in her life. It just happened. And don't so many things in our lives go that way? (See last Monday's post, "In An Instant.") Seedy's image is in the poster, except the artist goofed. Seedy has just 3 legs. Oops!

I have a friend who rescues Yorkies and finds forever homes for them. She has three herself. Another friend has rescued several big dogs. I've rescued half a dozen cats, and my son, bless his heart, rescued a mother cat and her eight kittens. These stories are all so heart-warming, aren't they?

I'm not the only one of the Chicks who has a rescue dog in her mystery series. My friend Duffy Brown had this to say about her doggie character: "I have a rescue pup in my Consignment Shop series...Bruce Willis. Reagan found him hiding under her porch and shared her chicken McNuggets with him. They bonded."  You can see his "photo" here.

And Chick Mary Jane Maffini said, "Peachtree (aka Walter the Pug) was put up for 'adoption' online after the family had a baby.  It wasn't a complete rescue, but a timely adoption. She's Victoria's dog and we all love her.  Maybe not close enough to a 'real' rescue."  Close enough for me, MJ. A dog's life was saved.  You can see Walter in the poster above. He's such a cutie pug-tootie, isn't he?

And then there's my good buddy Maggie Sefton, who has real life rescues in her family. She told me, "Kate, here are two photos---Max at the vet's office sitting on the 
most vulnerable part of this anatomy and my "granddog" Oscar, Serena & 
Jeff's Dachsund. Oscar was found in a Houston shelter, shivering at the back of the big caged area. 
Now, he gets to be Big Brother to Mastiff puppy Boss."

Here are Maggie's photos.

Have you rescued a dog? Or any animal? Everyone who does should stand up and take a bow. You are an angel on earth.

Have a waggingly wonderful week.






 


Black Thumb Girl!

by Leann


Spring really is here, even if many of you are still dealing with ice and snow. (And I am very sorry about that!) That means, according to our Home Owners Association, we need to get our new yard landscaped. Trouble is, though my husband is great at growing vegetables, he knows very little about
landscaping. The sad thing is, I know even less. Just one look at the place designated for plants etc. outside our front door created immediate conflict. I don't want conflict. I want this to be easy.

I have an "idea" of what I'd like to see, but I don't know a thing about plants aside from the reality that they need to be cared for. My mother had a green thumb and so does my sister. I have managed to destroy every single plant that has ever come near
me. It really is that bad. I'm proud to say I do know what growing region we are in--7b. Good thing, too, because I might have wanted to add lilacs to the front yard--but they don't grow here.

To compound the matter, I cannot spend much time outdoors. I am allergic to everything, including all the insects that will find me immediately. It's like I have a sign on my back that says "bite me." All I know is I want color, something like what's pictured below. When we had to re-landscape our yard to sell our house in


Texas, I hired two brothers. I had a vision for what I wanted, but of course no names for plants that would work. But they spoke my language! They understood me! They also did a fantastic job.

If I can convince my tightwad of a husband to let me do this again, that's what I'd like to do. Meanwhile, I am sure there is a Landscaping for Dummies book out there, right?

What about you? Is anyone a black thumb person like me? (I need company!)

I KNOW I WROTE IT DOWN SOMEWHERE--BUT WHERE?

by Mary Kennedy
 Okay, true confession time. Do you make lists and lose them? Do you write things on post-its and little bits of paper and scatter them throughout the house? Do you write things down on whatever is handy? Like the back of a phone bill, or in the margin of a newspaper?  Do you shove business cards and scraps of paper into your address book instead of entering them alphabetically on a page? I'm guilty as charged of all these things. I read somewhere that "creative types" are more prone to dashing off ideas, "notes to self," and inspirational material than "normals." Of course, I found this notion appealing because I could tell myself that I was just being creative when I couldn't find a recent "deal memo" I'd written on the back of a greeting card and accidentally mailed!! I'm sure the recipient wondered why I was writing about advances and option clauses on the back of her birthday card.  Like most folks, I'd much rather think of myself as "creative" than "chronically disorganized."  If one of your New Year's resolutions was to "get organized," there are several ways to go about it. You can go for the tried and true day planner.                                                            Or if you prefer, you can use the electronic version.                                                             The late Joan Rivers was fond of writing down jokes and "one-liners" when inspiration struck. She kept a variety of lovely little porcelain bowls scattered throughout the house. At the end of the day, her assistant emptied all the bowls and entered Joan's comments into a computer file that was categorized by topic. Instant organization! Sadly, most of us don't have an assistant who could do this, but I really like the idea.                                        One of my friends is so organized, she keeps "lists of lists." Wow--that is so far beyond me I can hardly imagine it. Another friend (at the opposite end of the spectrum) has a novel method of saving any important piece of paper. She simply buys a half dozen picture frames at the Dollar Store and sticks her "must-not-lose" piece of paper in a frame! I know it sounds odd, but it's actually effective. It's pretty hard to "lose" a picture frame.
 So what's your secret to staying organized. Do you faithfully keep datebooks and diaries and address books? If you have any tips, please share them. Mary Kennedy  

Spring had better sprung!

by Lorraine Bartlett / Lorna Barrett / L.L. Bartlett

Happy First Day of Spring (for those of you in the top half of the world -- and Happy First Day of Autumn for those of you living down under).

There are FINALLY signs of spring everywhere.

Geese.  I'm not sure if these are travelers, since we get so many who winter over these days, but they've been doing a lot of honking, so even if they live here year round, they're they're making a cheerful noise.

Daffodil points. My mother's little garden in front of the house is coming to life with them, and the tips of crocuses. 

You can see people's lawns again, and the grass is starting to get a tinge of green.

Well, not on my side of the street.  I'm still surrounded by snow, Snow, SNOW!!!  In fact, it seems like everywhere I went yesterday, the snow had done a good job of receding.  Except on MY street. Some of the lawns on the east side of the street have grass, but not on my side.

I'd love to be able to go out back to check to see if there are daffodil points, but ... guess what!  There's too much snow.  Not on the garden, but on the pool deck there's still at least 10-12 inches of ice. (Used to be snow, but now it's solid and you can't shovel it.)

And for everyone who can't wait for the first snowfall, they should be made to look at the dirty piles of the stuff that sits in parking lots until May.

When I look out my front window, I see a shrunken pile of snow, but it's still there. It'll still be there 2-3 weeks from now, too.  (Courtesy of  plow guy, who shoved it all in one pile, at the TOP of the driveway instead of the bottom like every other plow guy. We're going to have a little talk before next winter.)

There's another storm predicted for today and tomorrow in the northeast, but luckily it's going to skirt by us. We'll get some rain.  I hope it washes some of the dirt from the snowpiles.

And how's the weather where you are?

Join me on my Staycation

By Mary Jane Maffini who is sometimes half of Victoria Abbott

There’s nothing quite like the relief  I feel when a manuscript goes off to the editor.  I usually like to find some way to celebrate or even better, take a mini-vacation.  But this March, my plans were foiled.  My vacation plans had been rescheduled (a story for another blog).  My hubby was out of town.  Long story short: it was winter in Ottawa. I wanted a break. And I was stuck at home. 

When life sends lemons, we know what to do.  I decided to take a STAYCATION for my lemonade.  No long line-up in airports or getting up at 3 am to catch a connection. No bulging suitcases or realizing that the bathing suit should have come with a tent.  
This was a time to connect with family and friends and do things I’d been putting off. 



I had time to have a longer than usual visit with my 92-year old mother-in-law.  We had a ‘picnic’ with ribs and sweet potato fries at a table the staff set up at her care home. 

You may remember that Teagan and I got to make a pie and enjoy Paddington at the movies. We also had time for Teagan to draw and paint.  I got to keep this one! 



I caught up with my friends, usually over lunch or walks or browsing in stores.  Who has time for that as a rule?  
My friend Christine and I had a great lunch and then explored a shop next door that specializes in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Who knew there was such a place?





The weather didn’t really cooperate, but later in the week, I did enjoy a cup of coffee while basking in front of the ‘lawn’. 








There was time to relax with the pooches (and bribe them) and to clown around a bit with Victoria (courtesy of the Dollar Store).   Even our trip to the vet was more relaxed without the time pressure.


 



Speaking of St. Paddy's Day, what's that without music?  I got to enjoy my friend Chris Rodgers and his amazing band, The Bay County Bys, play in the village. The roof was coming off our local pub, The Mill Tavern, that night.  

Still a few things to do before I get back to work, a stroll around the village, a visit to the French Café and (if the snow melts a bit more), the dog park.  I'll try for pix.

All of these things were easy and fun because of the great people involved: people I care about (and excellent dogs too)  Most of them, like the best things, in life were free (or at least inexpensive).

I still have dozens of things I'd like to do on this staycation, but I guess it's time to get busy writing another book.
Victoria and I will be back at the keyboard very soon, plotting The Hammett Hex, our fifth Book Collector mystery. She had her own staycation, but she can tell you that herself.  I think we’ll both have more energy, now that we’re recharged. 
It's your turn.  Have you had a ‘staycation’?  Did you enjoy it and do you have any suggestions for us on our next staycation?

Home dirty home...

Duffy Brown here and we’re talking spring cleaning.
It’s spring and time to clean up the place. I looked at all the cleaning supplies at the grocery store, the price tags and considered the odor and the goop and thought UGH! There’s got to be a better way. My mom used vinegar and water to wash the windows and newspaper...cheaper and she knew what she was inhaling.
And now that it’s springtime...finally...the bugs are emerging. I hate all that spray and pesticides for inside and I have Dr Watson and Spooky to think about and of course myself. So I use Twenty Muleteam Borax. It works like a charm for keeping the thousand-legers at bay, spiders gone and other creepy crawlies out of the house.

I spray the houseplants with soapy water for aphids add white vinegar into the wash to make the clothes fluffy, add a dash of hair conditioner and it smell fantastic. I can remember my dad using baking soda to brush his teeth. He said it made them really clean and scrubbed off the tarter.

Sprinkling that baking soda in the bathtub gets rid of the ring and if you get candle wax on the rug ice hardens it and you can pick it off. Put a brown bag over the wax on the tablecloth and iron off the candle wax there too. The bag soaks up the wax.
When I have a cough I fine that honey, tea and a touch of bourbon works great and Coke helps to get rid of migraines and settle my stomach.
I still hang clothes in my shower area to get out wrinkles and hanging clothes outside to dry makes them smell better than any dryer sheets. A banana peal + water paste will shine the silver if you are in a pinch and cat litter is great to prevent slipping on the ice in winter.
I put my coffee grinds on the garden to enrich the soil and olive oil and a little wine vinegar is more than just salad dressing, it makes your wood furniture shine like no other. My Italian grandma taught me that one
So that’s some of my home remedies, what about you? Is there a tried and true home remedy you use and would like to share? It sure saves money and you usually have the stuff on hand and it’s not a bunch of chemicals.
Happy cleaning.Hugs, Duffy

Puppy Play

by Maggie Sefton






Right now, I'm traveling and in Texas doing Mother-of-the-Bride activities like viewing the final fitting of bride Serena's wedding gown.  :)   So, I thought I'd post more photos today of Serena and Jeff's French Mastiff puppy, Boss.  You can see that he's growing quickly.  He's now about ten weeks old. 






       

                          
  

 Okay, I used to be able to crawl under here and get out again.  What happened?








  





I'm getting sleepy again.      

IN AN INSTANT

by Kate Collins


Have you seen the new ABC show called, “In An Instant”? Each show is about someone’s horrendous experience and how s/he survived it. I’ve watched it twice and am hooked, because each episode’s outcome reaffirms my belief in miracles.

But the show also made me think about some of my own life-changing events that occurred “in an instant.” I’ve had several of them, mostly good, one tragic. But this blog is about one particular wonderful miracle that happened because of a spur-of-the-moment decision.

I was a stay-at-home mom struggling to become a published novel writer, dealing with a failing marriage, and helping my court reporter friend out with her business. She spent so many long hours transcribing depositions that she had no time to send out statements or proof-read her transcripts. I filled both of those roles for her.

One day, out of the blue, she informed me that a law office in town was looking for a part-time filing clerk.  Why she gave me this information has always been a puzzle because: a) I had been an elementary teacher; I had no office training, b) she couldn’t afford to lose me, c) she had no reason to think I’d be interested in working outside my home.

What was more of a puzzle was that I drove to the law firm the next day and inquired about the job.  I can’t tell you why, I just did it.  I was ushered in to see the office manager who, surprisingly, I knew from a school committee we’d both been on.  She asked about my secretarial skills and I admitted I had no training, but I could type, use a computer, and alphabetize. She asked me to start the next morning.

Needless to say, I left in a state of shock. There was no way I could take that job. Why would I even want to? File legal papers? Take documents to court? Did that sound like a job for an almost published novelist with a master’s degree in education?

I started work on the following Monday. Two months later I was being trained as a legal secretary. One year later I sold my first historical romance novel. Two years later I filed for divorce. Four years into the job, I married the boss, who truly was my soulmate, my twin heart, the man who changed my life forever. All because, for some inexplicable reason, my friend mentioned a job she did not want me to take, and without analyzing or trying to talk myself out of it, I got into my car and drove to that law firm. I truly believe I was guided there.

I know other people who’ve had similar experiences. Because of a snap decision, their life went in a totally different direction than they’d ever imagined.  How about you?

And remember, today is the beginning of my THIRD QUESTION GIVEAWAY. All you need to do is answer a new question each Monday in March about A ROOT AWAKENING for a chance to win a $25 gift card. You'll find the question on my website here.