Saucy Minx

36,000 words in and I have a new opening scene. . . and by new I mean formerly know as page 60. My manuscript is a saucy minx.

Stay tuned for the upcoming Writing Sexual Tension entry. I'm giving a workshop on it. Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

My Sunday afternoon

Play break in the mountains today. This picture reminded me of writing a novel, keep working on it and enjoy the trip.

Chef Michael Smith | Cookbooks

I first heard of Michel Smith because every time I happened to be flying WestJet, his show Chef at Home would be on.

I picked up one of his cookbooks and it is a family favorite. Happy cooking. . . and writing.

Chef Michael Smith | Cookbooks

rewriting scenes and de-cluttering

What did Shakespeare say? More matter, less art?

Whew. . . more scene rewrites. I'm digging the de-cluttering, though. I'm learning lots about myself and how hoarding words in a manuscript can be just as ridiculous as hoarding physical things in our lives. Do I really need to hold onto books I haven't read in 15 years?

But I digress. . .

I'm rewriting scenes and I am fascinated how attached to particular words or phrases or sentences I get. Why is that? They are just words and if the story changes and the words are no longer the perfect one(s), why should I be attached to them? I can go write more that are perfect for how the story now is. So silly. But I find myself looking at what was at one time a humdinger of a line, and now it is just out-of-place clutter.

Ouch.

Where appropriate, use your delete button. It is a friend, a resource, a tool to help us on our writing journey.

Happy de-cluttering. And writing!

Dierks Bently was in Calgary February 21,2012

Dierks Bentley was in Calgary last night!! Dang that dude gives a good show!! I had an absolute blast. Thanks Dierks, for coming to Calgary and I so have to put a concert scene in the next book.

Have a good tour!

Cooking and Writing

Ever write and cook at the same time? Sometimes when I am cooking I have my laptop handy so when I am waiting in between cooking tasks, I can get a few minutes writing time in. And it is way more fun to be writing in those little breaks instead of doing dishes.

Blocks of solid writing time are lovely, but sometimes schedules make that a no-go for several days, and if I haven't written in a few days, I need to reread and plug back into the story, so to speak, which cuts into actual writing time. So, I harness whatever time I can, whether that is a five minute snippet, or a five hour one. The wee time slots also keep the story fresh in my mind and rolling until the next marathon writing session.

Happy writing, and reading!

Rocky Mountains

Hey fellow readers and writers. Hope everyone is gearing up to have an awesome weekend. Last weekend I got to play in those beautiful Rocky Mountains. I love them. Seriously, they are like an automatic reset button, refresh, regroup, recharge . . . you get the picture. I brought my laptop, too, and got a bit of writing in but mostly used the weekend to refill my well, so to speak. Okay, and maybe hit the spa. It is a once a year event and dang, that was good! Remember to take care of yourself. If you are like me, life is fantastically chaotic and most spare minutes are devoted to writing and other passions. Remember to play, too!

Happy Weekend!