M.J. Compton's Blog, page 67

Me Time

Lately I’ve felt overwhelmed. Too much to do and not enough time. Every day I murmur a prayer of thanksgiving because my children are grown and gone. If I were still doing the mom thing . . . I can’t even contemplate it.

It’s not all bad. I’m realizing my lifelong dream/ambition of being a published author. It’s the peripheral obligations that are getting me down.

One of my goals for this calendar year is a monthly date with myself. Too bad I haven’t had time to do that. I barely have time to get in a weekly session of yoga. My second quarter goal is to add another half hour of exercise into my week. But exercise isn’t me time. It’s a peripheral obligation that takes away from the writing time.

I’m in serious need of not only a date with myself, but some substantial me time.

I’d like to go to a baseball game.
I’d like to do some real cooking on the weekend.
I’d love to go to a movie with my husband.
I have several ideas for custom music mixes I’d like to work on.
Reading without guilt would be so nice!
I’d like to sip a glass of wine and relax when I get home from Day Job.

I would also like writing time. Writing is my dream. Something has to give.

Another one of my goals this year is “say no.” Don’t be surprised when you start hearing me say it more often.

Update on And Jericho Burned

Woke up this morning to the great news that And Jericho Burned was reviewed by Night Owl Reviews and is a Reviewer Top Pick!

Mad Men, Sad Commentary

The second half of the final season (I hate that marketing ploy) of Mad Men premieres tonight. I will watch it, although with great reluctance.

Several years ago, my husband and a co-worker each insisted I needed to watch the program. Eventually I relented, and TV Stevie cued up the DVDs. We binge watched together (his third time).

From the beginning, the show made me uncomfortable. Hideously so. Although I started working in local TV a good 10 or so years after the time frame of Mad Men , the depiction was realistic. Too realistic.

After I caught up on the story, TV & I watched the show every Sunday night. I would see comments on social media about how well written the show was. I suppressed a shudder. A friend asked me who thought the program was written well. Men? Of course. But that wasn’t my issue. If the program wasn’t well written, it wouldn’t evoke the negative reaction.

A few weeks ago, I finally figured out why I hate the show. Entertainment is about the fantasy. That’s what romance book editors tell their writers all the time: people read romance for the fantasy. Escapism. Mad Men is about the reality, and I didn’t like those times when I lived them. Why would I want to revisit something so awful?

In December, TV Stevie and I binge-watched True Blood, which is about the fantasy. I loved it so much more than Mad Men. What woman wouldn’t want to be irresistible to hunky men?

Will I watch part two of the final season of Mad Men? Probably, but it has more to do with doing something with my husband than it does watching because I want to know what happens to Don Draper. I really don’t care.

WIP Wednesday: Linda Mooney

Today I’d like to welcome an long-time friend and fellow author, Linda Mooney.

Linda, April is National Humor Month. Do you like in infuse humor in your books? Can you share an example?

LM: The majority of my “humorous” books are my naughtier ones, which I write under the pseudonym of Carolyn Gregg. The humor itself is not the “ha-ha, laugh out loud” variety. Instead, it’s little incidents, thoughts, and dialect which make the story funny.

For example, in Chicken Fried Beefcake, the heroine is a klutz.

            “I… It’s late.  You’re right.  I need to get back to my room and try and get some sleep before tomorrow.”  Pulling her feet out of the water, Beth rose to her feet and turned to quickly leave, when her toes got caught in the sodden hem of her pajama bottoms.  She instinctively tried to kick herself free, when she lost her balance.

With nothing to grab onto to keep herself from falling, Beth could only flail her arms helplessly as she fell backwards off the pier and into the tank.  Straight into Billy’s embrace.

In Fits Like a Glove, the main male lead is in desperate need of cash, so he agrees to model “designer condoms”.

“It’s our new holiday line.”

“It says it’s the ‘Dress Your Dick’ line. Don’t tell me you’re serious.”

“Aww, I think they would be cute. Have you tried one on yet?”

Guy chuckled. “Actually, I was sort of waiting for you to show up before I did. I read that they’re meant for decoration only.”

“Yeah. That’s exactly what the intent is. To get lovers to have a little fun. Play around. You know. Kind of like foreplay. Put one on.”

Inside each box was a cardboard dildo dressed for a specific holiday. There was a St. Patrick’s leprechaun and a Valentine edition covered with little glittery hearts. Two were for Easter. One multi-colored version was meant to represent an egg. It even had little ball sacks. The other one was a rabbit, complete with little ears.

MJ: LOL!  If you didn’t write, what would be your creative outlet?

LM: There were several years when I gave up writing. Most of that was when I was caring for my husband, who had a heart transplant. At that time, I made Christmas ornaments out of vintage spoons. But I’ve always felt the need to create. When I was a Kindergarten teacher, I was constantly making games and lessons for them. But writing has always been my number one outlet since I was five years old.

MJ: Other than writing, what would be your dream job? Why?

LM: I would love to be a travel agent and get to visit the world. Especially overseas to places like Ireland and the UK. I’m getting hit by the wanderlust big time.

MJ: Describe your ideal/dream writing space.

LM: I have it! Or pretty much so. It’s a spare bedroom where I can spread out, now that my son has moved out on his own. My walls are covered with all sorts of paraphernalia that either relate to a book I’ve written, or to an idea I have for a story. The only thing missing is an actual fireplace. I’d love to have one. My best mindset is when it’s quiet except for the crackling of the flames. If I had the money, I’d install an electric or gas one in the room. In the meantime, I have a DVD of a fireplace that I often play when I’m writing.

MJ: What do you love most about your WIP hero?

LM: He’s willing to compromise, even when he’s given direct orders not to. Rather than blindly obey his commander, he knows the only way his people will survive is to join forces with the enemy. He’s not happy with that option, but life is sacred to him. The heroine sees that in him, and it’s part of what changes her mind about the kind of creature he is. You see, he’s not human, but humanoid.

MJ: What do you least like about your WIP heroine?

LM: She’s human. She’s also headstrong and more likely to react on impulse instead of thinking things out first. But sometimes one has to rely more on gut instinct and fast action, rather than sit and discuss possible solutions. She obviously wouldn’t make a good diplomat.

MJ: What genre is your current WIP?

LM: It’s a sci-fi romance.

MJ: How did you come up with your hero and heroine’s names?

LM: Believe it or not, I discovered them in movies. They’re real first names of actors. The last names I pulled out of thin air.

MJ: How did you choose the setting for your current WIP?

LM: I came across a photo of a world that simply ended. It was like a huge, cosmic knife had sliced away part of the planet. From there, I thought of the subtitle, The Rim of the World, and the rest just sort of blossomed in bits and pieces until it formed a cohesive storyline.

MJ: Can you tell us a bit about your current release?

LM: The title of my current release is Neverwylde, The Rim of the World, Book 1

Here’s an excerpt:

“Pour on the juice, Lieutenant! Don’t let them get away!”

“Aye, sir!”

Lt. Kelen Chambliss pressed down on the sensitive touchpad in front of her, her eyes glued to the screen in front of her. The Seneecian ship continued to bob and weave as it tried to evade them. Behind her, she could hear Captain Arvey barking orders.

“Fullgrath! Where the hell are our cannons?”

“Almost at full strength, sir!” The weapons master sounded tinny above the roar of the engines as the pursuit continued.

Kelen rolled the fingers of her right hand up the slide, increasing their speed another quarter urg, and hoped it would be enough. It was quickly becoming too difficult to concentrate on trying to overtake the sleek enemy vessel, with the way it undulated through the nebula like an oiled snake.

MJ: Sounds wonderful! How can readers purchase your books?

LM: Each book has its own buy links. Once readers go to my website and click on a book, the links for to purchase are located there. I have my books in about 9 different venues.

MJ: And how can readers keep track of what’s going on with you?

 LM: I have a website, a blog for my Linda books, a blog for my Carolyn Gregg books, and a Facebook page. I’m also on Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr, and LinkdIn.

 MJ: Thanks again for stopping by, and good luck!

 

 

 

 

How Will My Garden Grow?

The snow is finally melting. I saw tulips peeking up next to the edge of the snow crust. I still can’t see any crocus.

Part of that is because the landmarks in my back yard have changed since last spring. The pool is finally gone, the patio extension was in progress when the weather turned to . . . standard stuff for this part of the world, and I have a mud pit waiting for wallowing. . . under the snow.

Now that April is nearly upon us, I’m thinking about that space again.

One thing I know I want is herbs. Basil, parsley, chives, and cilantro at the minimum. TV Stevie would probably like a tomato plant. I think a container garden is the way to go. I don’t want just a low-maintenance space, I want a no-maintenance space. I want to take my laptop outside and write. I want to sip fruity ice tea and bask in the heat and light. (Yes, I ordered my Celestial Seasonings Cool Brew Iced Teas on Monday; they arrived on Wednesday. I am all set there!)

“Only to the timid is April the cruelest month.” ~Amanda Vail, Love Me Little.

I think April is filled with possibilities.

Writing Wednesday: Reviews

Authors live for reviews. Especially new authors. I check my Amazon and Goodread pages every day, looking for reviews. (And if you’ve read my books and haven’t left a review, why not?)

So imagine my delight when I opened my email a few weeks ago and learned Night Owl Reviews had reviewed my first book, Moonlight Serenade. The review is now up. You can read it here. If you don’t want to do that, here’s what the reviewer wrote:

The scenes and details are well written and capture the imagination and the intriguing events certainly arouse the reader’s curiosity. The author has created a fascinating setting full of intriguing and sexy characters with some interesting elements. I was completely caught up in the story from the very beginning and I am looking forward to visiting with the Toke Lobo and the Pack band again.

Doesn’t that just put a smile on this face.

Slice of Life Sunday: The Madness without Me

It’s NCAA Basketball Tournament time again. In years past, I would take the afternoons off from work; I would have a tuna sandwich bar party; I would watch men’s college basketball until I dropped.

That habit gradually changed. The tournament was no longer exclusively on broadcast TV (and Superman help you if you refuse to pay your local cable monopoly for the higher tier channels, and I’m cable-challenged anyway.) Last year, my team left the beloved conference (ruined by football), so the that dampened my spirit. And this year, my “home team” isn’t in any post-season at all.

This year, all the madness of March means to me is . . . baseball is right around the corner!

I watched college basketball—it’s practically a law in Syracuse—but it was tiring. There was no space or time to breathe the way there was in baseball. Baseball was spiritual, like yoga.

I could really use some spirituality right about now.

 

WIP Wednesday: Staying in the Story

Image credit: andrejad / 123RF Stock Photo

Writing is hard work. When you’re trying to fit it around a Day Job and family, it’s easy to lose track of the story.

Here are some of my tricks for staying in the story.

My Day Job computer passwords are story related. Whether it’s the subject, the working title, or character names, every time I open a new program, I have to think about the story.
I create a sound track for every book I write. It’s on a CD in my car, it’s on my mp3 player. Listening to those particular songs remind me of story nuances.
I listen to RWA Conference Workshops on my mp3 player at Day Job. You’d be surprised how much a Chat with Nora Roberts can be inspiring.
Sticky notes. I have pads of little sticky notes and when something strikes me, I jot it down and stick it to the back of my cell phone (I don’t have a smart phone). When I get home, I transfer the note from my phone to my desk or open up the Scrivener file and type in the idea.

Do you have any favorite tricks for keeping in the story when you can’t be at your desk?

Those Compton Sisters

My brother and his family frequently make comments about the Compton girls or the Compton sisters, referring to his three daughters.

 

Please. While they are lovely young women, they didn’t invent being the Compton sisters. That honor belongs to my sister and me.

But then I realized my father’s siblings were the original Compton sisters. I was lucky enough to get a photo of them together (with my sister and me) a few years ago. That’s Aunt Arlene on the left and Aunt Leona on the right.

Apologies to Uncle Roy’s daughters Denise & Erika, the only other Compton girls/sisters of our generation.

The next generation continues the Compton sisters tradition (in addition to my nieces): my cousin Bill’s daughters Jennifer & Jessica, my cousin Mike’s daughters Sarah & Nicole, and my cousin Gordon’s daughters Patience & Pearl. Also Kevin’s daughter Elaine, Pete’s daughter Rose, and Gerhart’s daughter Marisha.

Beyond that generation, I am clueless.

There are a lot of us “Compton Girls” around. We rock.

(Further apologies to anyone I missed.)

 

Love at First Sight: Not a Myth

A few months ago, one of my friend’s teenage daughter watched While You Were Sleeping and snorted in disbelief because the heroine married someone she’d known for only a week.

One criticism I often hear about romance novels is the “unreality” of how quickly romantic relationships develop.

Short courtships don’t bother me. I believe in them. My parents knew each other 3 months before they got married–nearly 61 years ago. I started dating TV Stevie at the end of March; our wedding was August 8 of the same year. That was 27 years ago. But those were long relationships . . . compared to my sister.

On August 5, my sister met the roommate of a cousin’s boyfriend. On August 29, she married him. That’s twenty-four days.

While that is amazing enough in itself, you also need to know that in 1976, there was a ten-day waiting period from the time you bought your marriage license until the time you could actually get married in this state.

She lost him last month, suddenly and terribly. After 38 years of marriage, she loved him as much as she had the day she married him, if not more. The depth of her grief is unimaginable to me.

But the depth of their love for each other is the reason I firmly believe in love at first sight.

So to all the naysayers out there who don’t believe a week is enough time for love to take root , I give you this proof.