S.J. Pajonas's Blog, page 70

February 2019 Goals

Well, for once, I don’t feel like time flew away from me. January was a long month! But now here we are at February and it’s time to set goals for a new month.

What Happened With January’s Goals?

Finish writing Daydreamer 5. DONE! And I think you’ll all enjoy this one! I certainly enjoyed writing it!

Continue website maintenance. I did not finish up the Book Chats but I got more of them done and into Pinterest too.

Set up evergreen campaigns through January. I think I only set up two of these.

Work on removing honorifics from Daydreamer Series. I only JUST finished writing Daydreamer 5 yesterday, so this goal is being moved to February.

Finish watching Ads For Authors Modules on AMS and Bookbub PPC Ads. I finished watching the Amazon Ads course and I started playing around with ads and seeing how they worked now. I had taken a few months off from them and now they are drastically different. I ended up losing money on ads this month which is a bummer, but I learned some good lessons from it. I’m almost done watching the Bookbub Ads course, and I hope to start on those soon.

Play around with Daz 3D. I didn’t even open Daz 3D this month. Too much other stuff going on.

Intermittent fasting, knitting, walking/stairs, stretching, and reading. I did all of these! In fact, my intermittent fasting is going really well and I’ve cut a meal from my diet which has been much better for my overall energy levels. I’m also losing weight. My flexibility has really improved and I’m in a lot less pain too. All wins!

A Look Back At January

Business Goals For February

Get all my tax information together. Supposedly, our company-appointed accountant is going on maternity leave soon which means I need to work on my taxes. I hope to do them today, tomorrow, and Sunday and be done with them.

Build the new SFR Station website. I took ownership of the SFR Station last year, and I finally have time to whip it into shape. I’ll be starting with redesigning the overall website and templates, instituting a new color theme and logo, and I’ve asked for help with going through all the entries and updating them. I hope to have it done by the end of the month.

Edit Daydreamer 5. This will probably happen near the end of the month and spill over in the first week of March.

Work on removing honorifics from Daydreamer Series. This needs to be done, especially now that I have new covers for the whole series.

Start Bookbub Ads. I plan to advertise all my Book 1s on Bookbub in the coming months. In February, I’ll start with REMOVED and THE DAYDREAMER DETECTIVE.

Personal Goals For February

Intermittent fasting, knitting, walking/stairs, stretching, pottery, and reading. All of the usual stuff!

Have a great February!

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My Former Flickr Life: How I Learned To Take Photos Every Day

WARNING: THIS POST IS VERY IMAGE HEAVY.

About ten years ago, I was a big fan of Flickr, the online photo community. We talk about social media now like it’s micro-blogging, but back then, Flickr was the way we documented our lives. At the time, I was running my knitting blog and I had a lot of friends on Flickr from all over the world and from all walks of life. I paired Flickr with my blog to have a robust online presence that included plenty of long-form writing and photos as well.

I remember being in awe of my Flickr friends and how easy they were with the camera, either pointing it at themselves or at the world around them. And I wanted that ease as well! So, seeing all of my friends participating in yearly challenges, I decided to join as well.

Saint Patrick’s Day, 2009

These days, people ask me how I manage to take so many photos. I have lots of photos here on the blog and on Instagram. For many authors, this is a crazy amount of photos. They are introverts and want to keep their lives to themselves or they don’t know how or what to take photos of. I’ve been asked several times, “How do you do it? How do you take so many photos?”

The answer is “By habit,” of course. I set this habit in 2008-2009 and it has stuck. I participated in a Flickr-wide challenge called 365 Self-Portraits, and yep, I took a self-portrait every day for a year (actually, more!) It was a project that taught me to be okay with photographing myself, and with that habit established, I could turn the lens on the world around me too. I had a Canon T1i with a remote for most of the challenge. Before that, I had a Canon Powershoot that I used the self-timer with to take self-portraits.

Shopping at Fairway in Brooklyn

A self-portrait was defined as anything with you in the photo, so we all got super creative! We took photos of ourselves in every place we could, with or without friends or our children, with or without props. We also had a ton of fun memes to follow if we wanted to. Bench Monday. Face-Down Tuesday. Face-Up Wednesday. Yes, I did all of these as you’ll see below.

I eventually left Flickr because I was unhappy with the way the company was managed, and I did transition my photo habit over to Instagram. I must say, though, that I had such a great time on Flickr, and those years can never be replaced.

My advice to people who want to take more photos remains, BUILD A HABIT. Join a challenge. Make it a part of your life! I just spent a whole day looking back on these photos I took and I’m so glad I did take them. What memories to have! I’m excited to be sharing them with you today.

Some of my favorite self-portraits were the ones I took with my daughter. I can’t believe how little she is here!

As you can see, I had to be okay with setting my camera down places and walking away from it. That took a lot of confidence!

Bench Monday was one of the tamer Flickr challenges.

I took Face-Down Tuesday to some extremes! From the top: At Century 21 in Bay Ridge, At Duane Reade, At the park with kids running around, and at home while my little one jumped on the bed.

And then Face-Up Wednesday took the meme to a whole other level! The top one is my favorite. Erin Mintyfresh, C, and I on the floor at IKEA (Lololol, this one still cracks me up), on the sidewalk in front of our apartment, in Prospect Park, and on the floor at Fairway (yes, I can’t believe I did that one either!)

There were the moments alone…

There were the experiments…

There was lots of grocery shopping…

In front of famous buildings…

Reading a favorite series…

Time spent with friends!

Enjoying a new hobby (besides all the knitting photos I took)…

And milestone purchases. My kids still use this MacBook Pro every day, by the way. It is literally 10 years old!

Once I learned how to take photos of myself, I started taking photos of other things too. I started to see symmetry or chaos everywhere. I saw colors and patterns I wanted to capture.

Nobody stacks produce like the employees at Fairway in Brooklyn!

Once you get going, you can find something to take a photo of every day, even if your life is mundane. The little things in life are interesting.

Back then I took 90% of my photos with my DSLR camera, and now I take them all with my phone. The method has changed, but the habit has not.

I hope this post inspires you to take photos every day as well!

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Featuring HER FATHER’S FUGITIVE THRONE By Brandon Barr

As some of you will remember, I featured Brandon Barr a few months ago right after he had passed away from cancer. He is very much missed in the author community, and we still think about him all the time.

Today, I’m featuring the third book in his Song of the Worlds Series which just published last week. Brandon did his best to finish off many of his stories before he passed, and he and his family also asked other authors to help edit and publish those stories posthumously. I’m sure we’ll get a few more Brandon Barr stories in the coming months!

Right now, all of the books in this series are only 99¢, so if you love epic fantasy you can pick the series up for a bargain.

The shadow of the Beast stalks Meluscia’s every move.

The prophetess’s dire warning looms as Meluscia fights to attain the throne. All the while, the dark Master of the Star Portal threatens to slay her and her band of prophets, bringing the world of Hearth into chaos.

Torn from the world he knows, Aven is held captive aboard a ship of ruthless mercenaries. Winter’s vision of the horrible creature becomes reality for Aven, and he must face the monsters of his past and present…for there is nowhere to run.

Her Father’s Fugitive Throne is Book Three in the epic sci-fi fantasy saga SONG OF THE WORLDS. Continue the series today!

Check out RISE OF THE SEER on…
Amazon

Find This Author Online

Learn more about Brandon Barr on…

Epic Fantasy Fanatics: https://epicfantasyfanatics.com/brandons-buddies/

Website: http://www.brandonbarr.com

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Sunday Update – January 27, 2019

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

I’m sure you won’t be surprised that it was another busy week here! I sure am not. And I feel like it’ll always be busy weeks until we retire.

Monday was our chill day. The kids had the day off for MLK day. I walked on the treadmill in the morning and then I taught my oldest daughter how to use the treadmill. She had been asking so it was time. It was so cold out! In the single digits Fahrenheit. So we didn’t go anywhere.

Tuesday, everyone was back to school and the weather warmed up a bit. I walked on the treadmill and then got working on cleaning out my bookcase. I have a bookcase and my husband has one, so that makes it easy to find MY books and clean them out when I need to. I got rid of two decent sized boxes of books. Most of these are books I know I’ll never read. Others were books I’ve read and know I’ll never re-read and others that I already own in ebook. It felt great cleaning it out! I’m happy with the results.

Wednesday was our busy day. I had chiropractor and acupuncture. Both sessions were intense enough to send me straight to bed after for almost two hours. I then got myself up, had tea, and took the kids to tennis. Afterward, we had fish tacos and watched The Flash since my husband had dinner in the city.

Thursday was pottery day! I watched another woman in the class make a cylinder/vase and finally I understood how that works! I then made a cylinder for the first time. I also trimmed two pots from the previous week and put a foot on one of my bowls which I had never done before. I came home ate and worked then didn’t shower until after the kids were home! They had piano lessons and I cooked pasta sauce which takes a few hours.

Friday was one of the better days. I took a rest day from walking because I had been struggling with fatigue and back and shoulder pain. Pottery is fun but it aggravates my back pain. So I took the day off which was a nice break. I worked on business stuff in the morning, went shopping for a birthday present for my kid’s friend, and then to Whole Foods to grocery shop. I made Japanese curry for dinner and got my writing done.

On Saturday, it was back to the treadmill! Then I had lunch and got to work on cooking. I ate this really tasty Amy’s frozen meal this week, Autumn Harvest Bowl, and I wanted to do my own version of it to freeze and eat for lunches. So today I made brown and wild rice then whole sweet potatoes in my Instant Pot. Then I cooked up some kale too and made 4 rice, adzuki beans, baked tofu, sweet potato, and kale bowls to freeze for lunches. I also whipped up some miso tahini sauce for on top. Then I also made some bread and butter pickled onions. When I was done with all of that, I wrote my words for the day. It was a day of work but with the Instant Pot, it was pretty easy and I was able to do other thing while it cooked.

Today, I had one child making muffins while the other reorganized the pantry. I’m hoping that she has now seen all the food available and will know what to get for snacks. I organized the last of the auxiliary bookshelves and I’ll be heading out for a walk OUTSIDE while my youngest is at a birthday party. I can’t wait to be outside!

In writing news, I am ALMOST done with Daydreamer 5! And then I need a few days off and I’ll be going back to make changes to the old books and get the new covers ready to go. Then I’ll edit Daydreamer 5 so I can get it done before I move on to work on the Flyght Series again. I’m aiming for a mid-to-late-March release for Daydreamer 5 !

What else happened this week?

I taught my oldest child to walk on the treadmill.

I got my own pottery tools with some birthday gift cards I received, and then I used them on Thursday!

Speaking of pottery, I finally figured out how to get more height and pull up for a cup or cylinder shape. I watched the woman across from me make a vase and it finally clicked.

Here’s everything I cooked up yesterday.

And the great bookcase purge! Top photo is before and bottom is after. I got rid of two big boxes of books.

And finally, I ended the week with a lovely cocktail made by my loving husband. Lol. He’s great and awesome at making cocktails.

That’s it for this week! Have a great week everyone!

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Book Chat #45 – H. Y. Hanna, Lindsay Buroker, Veronica Roth, and Neal and Jarrod Shusterman

It’s the first Book Chat of 2019! I had a really good time reading and enjoying books over the holiday break, then January got really busy. The books I had been reading were then only for at night before bed or to listen to with chores, so the reading slowed down. Let’s take a look at what I read and loved!

DARK, WITCH, AND CREAMY by HY Hanna

Bewitched by Chocolate is H. Y. Hanna’s paranormal cozy mystery series, and the first of its kind that I’ve actually enjoyed. I’m not really into the paranormal genre, but this hit all the right notes with me. A family secret. An ancient ruin. A cute, small town with lots of gossip. All things that I enjoy in a story. Though I was a little frustrated with the ending and the “capture” of the murderer, I see a lot of potential in this world and the characters! I will definitely be reading on.

FRACTURED STARS by Lindsay Buroker

I really enjoy Lindsay Buroker’s books! I picked this one up when I heard the premise for it, even though I haven’t finished her Star Nomad series. I figured it would be a fun side adventure and it definitely was. McCall was exactly the kind of heroine I enjoy to read about. She has her own way of doing things, and she sticks to her habits. I really liked that she used her knowledge to solve plenty of problems in this novel, and she stuck by her friends, Scipio and Junkyard. I was also really taken by Dash and his growth in the novel. Deep down, despite how everything started out, he was a good, caring person stuck in an awful situation. By the end, I had fallen in love with the whole universe! Each time I set the book down, I looked forward to picking it back up. A definite winner!

CARVE THE MARK by Veronica Roth

I wasn’t sure if I was going to enjoy this story or not. As many of my friends and readers know, I struggle with fantasy stories and suspending my disbelief. But I really enjoyed the mix of fantasy and science fiction in this first book! In Roth’s universe, all of these planets in connected systems have a “Current” that runs through them and gives people “Current gifts” when they come of age, usually in their teens. But really, this is sort of a Romeo and Juliet story. A tale of two rival factions/families that inhabit the same planet. It’s about corruption and lies. And it’s about finding love in the least likely of places. I know there was a lot of talk in the book community about Roth making the current gift for the main character, Cyra, the gift of pain, and how it commented on people suffering from pain, how they don’t feel it’s a gift. But I really didn’t see it, nor the connection to any real life ailments. I was pleased with the way Roth handled every person’s current gift and how it affected them. When I finished the audiobook, I immediately bought the second in the series. I hope to listen to that one next!

DRY by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

I love Neal Shusterman! And when I saw that he wrote this novel with his son, I knew I had to read/listen to it. The story kicks off right at the beginning of the “Tap Out” when California runs dry of water and the chaos that soon follows. I really enjoyed all the main characters in this one. The sister-brother team and her neighbor start out on a journey to find their missing parents after the parents leave to go find water, then the journey becomes a road trip that picks up new people along the way to finding water for themselves. I have to say that listening to this story made me anxious. It’s like when I read LIFE AS WE KNEW IT by Susan Beth Pfeffer and I wanted to hoard canned goods and dried food. Now, I really want to hoard water. Lol. Anyway, I loved the ending to this story. I was on the edge of my seat until the climax! Neal Shusterman never lets me down.

What have you been reading lately? Let me know in the comments!

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Read the First Chapter of FIRST FLYGHT

With 2019 in full swing, I can concentrate on my upcoming publishing schedule, including the launch of a new series, The Flyght Series! FIRST FLYGHT is due to publish in September! The Apple Books, Kobo, Google Play, and Nook preorders are all set, and the Amazon pre-order will be available on June 10th. So let’s reveal the first chapter today!

And now the first chapter of FIRST FLYGHT…

**Please note that there is profanity in this excerpt.

There they are.

I gasp and cover my lips with the tips of my fingers. I’m in luck. They’re still here! I giggle through a light breath and do a little dance when no one is passing by. I’m a lucky, lucky woman, and I’m rarely this lucky, so their availability must be preordained.

Let’s not even get into how gorgeous they are. I could die just from looking at them. The curves, the height. Mmm-mmm.

Yes, Vivian. You so deserve these. You’ve worked hard for the last six years, and these? These have been waiting at the end of the long haul.

I pull back from the window and pass my index finger over my bottom lip as I consider the practicality of spending so much money on something so frivolous. I am, after all, my mother’s daughter, and I would be nowhere in life if I didn’t pinch every credit until it bled. “Bleed those credits dry” is our family motto.

But I’ve been so good. I haven’t missed a day of graduate school in six years. I’ve passed every final, nailed every lab. I’ve never once screwed up a business plan, failed to calculate a profit-and-loss statement correctly, or mixed up an edible mushroom with its poisonous lookalike. I have succeeded because I’ve worked hard.

Through the shop window, Heidi, whom I’ve known since pre-specialty school, waves and catches me drooling. Her smile is bright, and my heart dances at the possibility of a good chit-chat too. I’ve had my nose stuck in a book for far too long.

Yes, I will get them.

The door to the boutique opens as I come near, and cool, conditioned air, wafts over me as I enter the store. It’s always warm on Ossun — warm, sunny, and just the right amount of precipitation too. Our engineers are the best in the system.

“Vivian! It’s so great to see you.” Heidi’s Portuguese accent is to die for, while mine, mixed with Japanese and English, is too dull.

We lean in and kiss each other on the cheek. Her beautiful blond hair is wrapped up with a silk scarf, and she smells like sandalwood. I hope I don’t smell awful from my commute on the train.

“It’s great to see you, too. How have you been?” Let’s be polite and hear from Heidi first.

“Fantastic. Business has been strong since I got these hot and trendy designers to sign on with me.” She gestures to a couch, and we sit next to each other, Heidi leaning in to confide in me. This is a posture I know well. “To be honest, my boyfriend is being a total asshole…”

And so it begins, Heidi’s long-winded confessional. Her number two boyfriend lost his job, so she moved on to a new one who has a better family, her parents’ home became infested with mice last month, and she’s been stuck running the store non-stop because her main manager has run off to Rio to pursue a potential wife. I listen to each sad tale, offer advice, and nod my head where warranted. I expected this to happen before I walked in the door, so I’m not surprised, though I am dismayed, when my quick detour turns into an hour of listening to someone else’s problems. A good chit-chat? What was I thinking?

Heidi takes a deep breath and places her hand on my arm. “Now tell me all about what’s going on with you! I saw you eyeing the Bomba-Farias in the window.” She raises her eyebrows suggestively, and I grin and lower my eyes.

“Well, you know. Graduation is coming up…”

“Congratulations!” She croons, folding her hands against her chest. “Six years? You did the second specialty?”

I nod as I lean back into the couch. “Finance and Hydroculture.”

She whistles. “Your parents must be so proud.”

“I think they’re happy that retirement is less than a year away.” In just a month, the family business will be mine, I’ll transition to full-time status, and then my parents will retire into Sakata City where they can eat out every night, go to museums every day, and travel whenever they want to. They deserve it.

“Don’t sell yourself short,” she says, reaching over to squeeze my arm. “I’m sure they’re proud of you.”

“Oh thanks,” I say, waving the compliment away. “It’s nothing.”

My parents are typical Ossun parents — they love me, but they also want the best for me. They want me settled into the business, married to a husband, maybe two, and having lots of daughters to hand down the land to. It’s our way.

“Goodness, look at the time. I shouldn’t keep you from your evening,” she says with a smile, and I do my best to hide my disappointment behind my ersatz grin. I guess she really didn’t want to know “all about what’s going on with me.”

“Anyway,” I say, changing the subject, “I’ve been eyeing those heels in the window for six months. I figured it was time for me to indulge.”

“Absolutely. I think I already have your size on file so let me get you a pair of those gorgeous heels. Bomba-Farias are worth every credit,” she sings as she heads into her storeroom.

I fidget while I wait for Heidi to return. Brush some lint off my dark, denim jeans, run my fingers through my ragged hair, wonder why I didn’t put on any makeup this morning. Well, I had planned to just run into town to drop off my final paper of the year, the one that they make you hand in in person with an accompanying interview. What I hadn’t planned on was going shopping afterward.

My foot bounces as I tip over my wristlet and check the time. I should be on the next train home. I have so much work to do. So, so much. I’m in the middle of designing two new systems — one hydroponics and the other aquaponics — for the greens we produce, I have to decide on a filtration and supplemental system for the water used in the rice fields, and there are staffing issues I have to work out. Thank goodness my brother, Tomu, has been handling the finances and will continue for another six months. It’ll take me months to get up to speed on everything related to the harvest, processing, and distribution.

At least I would be done listening to his whining soon enough. I’m sick to death of him. He can go off and do whatever new business he has cooked up, and he can get off my back. If I have to listen to him complain one more time about how I get “everything in this family,” I’m going to deck him. He didn’t just go to school for six years, studying from before the sun was up until it went down again, not dating, not having a social life. He didn’t go to school at all.

Fucking lazy-ass son of a bitch.

I take a deep breath as Heidi appears from the back storage room, a box in her hands.

She kneels down next to me. “You look ready to pull the ears off a minkfox,” she says, opening the box.

I sigh as I flick my wristlet on again, tipping my hand over to let it project to my ocular implant. My appointment calendar with tasks for the farm is completely booked for the next five months.

“I’m just a little busy…” My voice trails off as she pulls the shoes from the box. My stomach flutters and wow. They are breath-taking. The most beautiful shoes I’ve ever seen. “Oh my.”

“Handcrafted, Vivian. The best in the Duo Systems. The designers grow all of their leather to exacting specifications in the lab, then it’s hand-dyed. I’ve never seen a flaw in any pair I’ve ordered from them. Once you put them on, you’ll be hooked for life.”

The color is such a deep red it’s almost purple, and it shifts in the light as if it’s alive. The toe comes to a perfect point, and the eight-centimeter heels scream to be worn through the streets. Show me off! Put me on and dance across the pavement!

I slip my feet out of my comfortable around-town shoes and grimace at my toes. I haven’t had time to paint my toenails in months, but at least they’re clean and short. I’m on my feet too much though, and my heels are a disaster.

Heidi doesn’t flinch. She knows me and what I’ve been going through. She wouldn’t dare judge especially since she can get this sale from me. The heels slide on, and my feet sing.

“Ah, you have the right feet for these, the right height.”

When we both stand up, I tower over Heidi, and she’s wearing heels. I was ‘blessed’ with tall genes from my father’s side of the family. He dips his head when walking through doorways.

“Hot damn,” I breathe out, stepping to the mirror and looking at the shoes. They are incredible and entirely inappropriate for me. When and where am I going to wear these?

Wait, Vivian. I’ll wear them to graduation and the graduates’ ball. And then, hopefully, I’ll wear them on dates too when I’m finally registered as available for marriage. Sure, I’ll be expected to wear a kimono for most of my official outings, but I can wear dresses on dates.

My heart beats way up in my throat as I consider the possibilities for dating. No one of my stature would dare divide up her holdings between multiple husbands. One husband is enough. Two, tops. But meeting men has never been my strong suit. It’s been ages since I last dated. Can I even do it?

I look at myself in the mirror and assess the damage school has brought. I’m skinnier and softer than I used to be which is not a good look for someone as tall as me. Lots of walking to and from classes and to and from trains has kept my calves in shape, but my arms need muscle. My face is thin, and my hair is lackluster. But the shoes bring my whole body to life.

I must have them.

“What do you think?” Heidi asks as I walk a circle around the couch.

“I think… I think I’ll take them.” A smile brightens my face.

“Excellent! That was my easiest sale of the week,” she says, laughing and winking at me.

I flash forward to graduation day, me walking in these beauties, getting my diploma and hearing my name called for the honor roll. I worked my tail off for that one moment. I hope it was all worth it.

As I sit down, I access my wristlet, and my bank account while I’m slipping back on my wholly inadequate old shoes. Bye-bye hard earned credi…t..s…

What the…?

Balance, zero.

My face heats to inferno levels, and my heart races as I stop to access it again.

Zero.

Zero? How is this possible?

I swallow hard watching Heidi package up my shoes. My lines of credit, which are small and I only use in an emergency, are fine, but my bank account is completely tapped out. I scroll through the transaction report, my fingers massaging the air through the projection. Is Hecate down? Has it been hacked? I can’t remember the last time there was a problem with Hecate and the duonet, so… Fuck. There it is. All seven thousand, six hundred and thirty-two of my credits withdrawn earlier today.

I jump to my feet. “Ummmm.” My mouth dries as I sift through my options. Buy the shoes on credit? Come back later?

Shit. I’ve been robbed.

“Heidi, something’s come up, and I have to go.” I rush up to her at the counter and place my hands on the shoebox, trying to gain strength from their awesomeness. “I… I can’t buy the shoes today.”

I can’t believe it, but tears fill my eyes.

Over shoes.

No, from frustration.

Heidi’s face falls, and her brows knit with concern. “Oh no. Is everything okay? What happened? I saw you on your wristlet.”

“I have to go… It’s my… my parents.” I lie because I don’t know what else to do. “Hopefully I’ll be back.”

I turn and book it from the boutique, calling over my shoulder, “I’m so sorry!”

…

Sound intriguing? I’ll post the second chapter next month! And you can pre-order FIRST FLYGHT now for only 99¢ everywhere but Amazon (because Amazon does not allow pre-order of more than 90 days).

Pre-order FIRST FLYGHT!

Thanks for reading! If you want to be alerted to when FIRST FLYGHT is available for sale or pre-order on Amazon, join my mailing list and you’ll get all the news.

The post Read the First Chapter of FIRST FLYGHT appeared first on S. J. Pajonas.

Sunday Update – January 20, 2019

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

It was another busy week here. Are you surprised? I’m not! Let’s get to it!

Monday was my non-busy day which was great. The kids went to school and I got stuff done at home. No complaints there except that my husband flew out to Salt Lake City for work.

Tuesday, everything was going fine until I got a call from the school nurse right when I was about to sit down to write. My youngest wasn’t feeling well and wanted to come home. She had been struggling with losing her voice, so I had a feeling she’d come home. It was too bad it happened on Tuesday, as that was the first day of an after school activity that she had planned.

Wednesday was once again my busy day. The cleaning ladies came in the morning. After school, my youngest went to Girl Scouts, we picked her up from there, and went straight to tennis. We left tennis early to come home and eat. Then I dropped off the oldest at the high school at 6pm, came home and ate my own dinner, then we all went back at 7pm for a band concert. We came home late and my husband made it home from his trip.

Thursday, I was back at pottery class! I still have so much to learn! But I threw two pots and glazed another. I also learned why you MUST turn off the wheel and put away the foot pedal when you’re done. (Don’t ask. It’s embarrassing.)

Friday was my birthday! As most of you already know. Lol. I got my hair cut in the morning, went to Panera to get work done, had lunch with my friend, Amy, went grocery shopping, and came home to do my own thing. I decided that for my birthday I would redesign my Miso Cozy Mysteries covers so I worked on them Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I can’t wait to show them off to you all!

Saturday and Sunday have been spent doing lots of cover design work, working on my Amazon ads, and writing. I also spent my birthday gift cards and prepared to do lots of organizing this week. I have to clean out two closets in the house and my book shelves.

Writing is really coming along AND I not only have new Daydreamer/Miso Cozy covers to show off, but the REMOVED cover has been redesigned this week as well (by my awesome cover designer Najla Qamber). The Nogiku covers will come along slowly over the next few months and I hope to have them all for you to see in May/June.

What else happened this week?

We’re making our transition away from single-use plastics to reusable plastic containers. Here are some of the new containers!

Lots of writing this week and I crossed over 50k!

I glazed this bowl that had been left over from the last semester. White on the outside and black on the inside. We’ll see how it turns out.

Band concert! The kids did great!

I turned 43 on Friday! We celebrated with lots of seafood for dinner.

We were supposed to have a GIANT winter storm last night, but it was only a little snow and then rain.

And finally, a moment I won’t forget… The Emperor and Empress of Japan attended the grand sumo tournament today. It’ll be their last visit to see sumo before his abdication in April. I’m glad I got to see it!

Have a great week everyone!

The post Sunday Update – January 20, 2019 appeared first on S. J. Pajonas.

Happy Birthday To Me! Grab This Short Story For Free!

I’m a poet and I didn’t know it. Lol.

Hi Everyone! I’m 43 years old today. It’s snowing outside, and I hate snow, so there’s that. In blogging news, the blog was light with content this week as I worked my way through Daydreamer 5 and plenty of other stuff I had to get done. I hope to be back to regular posting in February once this draft is complete. I also have lots to do today, so I wanted to share a little cheer with you.

I’d love for you to grab my short story (10,000 words) MAMACHARI MATCHMAKER for free! I’ll keep it free until February 1st, so be sure to grab it soon!

This bike longs to be owned by a family with kids but is bought by a quiet, cosplaying, young woman instead.

How will Mamachari help Eriko to find true love?

~~~

Shhh… Listen To The Gods.

The Japanese believe the gods live in all things. Trees, appliances, animals, buildings — they all have a spirit living within them. Maybe, if you listen carefully, you can hear them too.

Download MAMACHARI MATCHMAKER for free!

I hope you all have an awesome weekend! I’ll be sure to post some photos from my birthday on the Sunday Update.

The post Happy Birthday To Me! Grab This Short Story For Free! appeared first on S. J. Pajonas.

Motivational Monday – Patience and Time

For this Motivational Monday, I’m reminded of the importance of both patience and time in the publishing business and in life.

I must be patient for the things I truly want in life. They will come as long as I keep working, as long as I keep moving ahead. I can’t give up hope! And I need the time to work those hours and really bring my dreams to fruition.

I remember how when I started this journey, I really thought that by Year Five I would have a strong audience and I’d be making a few thousand dollars a month. Not even close! Turns out I need a lot more patience and time to get to my goal. A lot. But that’s been a learning process, and now I know better.

With patience and time, I will succeed. They are the warriors I will keep by my side.

What do you hope to accomplish with patience and time?

The post Motivational Monday – Patience and Time appeared first on S. J. Pajonas.

Sunday Update – January 13, 2019

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

So proud of myself for again typing 2019 instead of 2018. *pats self on back*

This week just blazed right on by, and I was busy almost every day. Somedays I even had trouble remembering to take photos or videos.

Monday and Tuesday were my easy days with no after school commitments and nothing but ME time during the day to get writing and work done. And I do remember working those days as best I could, but I don’t remember any specifics. Lol. They are a blur. On Monday, the Amazon Ads dashboard changed and the whole author world went into a tizzy as we all figured it out. That’s all I remember from those two days except that I walked on the treadmill each morning and watched The Handmaid’s Tale.

Wednesday was my busy day. I went for a walk in the morning and then had chiropractor and acupuncture. Then lunch, and once the kids were home from school, I got them snacked and into the car for tennis lessons. I wrote at tennis lessons, then we picked up dinner.

After dinner, my youngest came to me tell me she didn’t feel well and felt cold. Uh oh. Yep. She was running a fever. I felt the immediate guilt of having sent her to tennis and not knowing she was sick, but how could I know? She didn’t say anything before we left and she seemed fine.

She woke up with a fever on Thursday, so I knew she’d be home from school both that day and Friday. I kept her busy on Thursday with movies and eye-guzzling TV. She felt crappy and I felt bad for her. I got a little food into her in the evening, which she promptly threw up at bedtime. The funny thing is that the puking broke her fever. She was fine all night and woke up the next day, fever free.

Friday, I still kept her home and tried to keep her hydrated and fed. She was a bit weak but no fever, so on the mend. I kept her busy so I could continue to work. No big deal since it’s not very often my kids get to sit around and eye-guzzle TV.

The weekend arrived and things were back to normal. The youngest went to a birthday party and my husband went to Long Island with my oldest to visit family and celebrate my sister-in-law’s 16th birthday. I stayed home and worked so my youngest could go to the birthday party.

Today, things are chill at home. Doing laundry and cleaning and reorganizing some things in the kitchen. I plan to cull and reorganize my bookcase this week!

I’m glad to report that my sleep is much better. I switched from drinking chamomile tea every night to take chamomile supplements instead. I still have one cup of tea at bedtime, but it’s not a lot, not like before. So I’m sleeping better and not getting up 3 times to pee. Thank goodness! I also bought a special pillow to put between my knees while I sleep and that has eliminated a lot of hip pain, along with daily leg and hip stretches and magnesium supplements. I honestly have not felt this limber and pain free in YEARS. So happy with my progress!

What else happened this week?

Some beautiful sunrises this past week!

Progress was made on Daydreamer 5! I am now past 42k word as of today.

Beautiful blue skies this week.

It was so windy here, it blew the cover off our outdoor furniture.

My birthday is coming up this week on the 18th, and so, I usually buy myself a new Lesportsac bag every year as a present. This year I got this super kawaii SPACE TALK print bag. I love it! And I also have a new wallet on the way too. My current Lesportsac wallet is over 6 years old and pretty darned dirty. It’s time to move on.

I only drink on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday now so I enjoyed some saké on Friday while writing.

And I’ve been working through the Ads For Authors course on Amazon Ads. I bought this huge course last year and the Amazon Ads modules had been updated since I last saw them. So I refamiliarized myself with the new features. And it gave me knitting time! I’m going to move on to Bookbub Ads this week.

Have a great week everyone!

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