Hey, it has been way too long since I wrote anything here. This post will be about a little bit of everything, just like my brain, lately.
I moved into a new massage office at the start of March. It is a large, lovely space, with a lot of bodyworkers in the building. The Wallingford neighborhood is great for walking and feeling like you are part of a community. I am close to a couple of great coffeeshops, a credit union in case I need to do some banking, a lot of great restaurants, and more. I have taken to the closest coffeeshop not only for lunch, but as a writing spot midday or after work.
I'm still doing a lot of research and study on writing and story craft, to help me in the still-to-come sixth draft revision of HISMZA. Meanwhile, I have been writing and editing several memoir pieces, mostly centered around place and travel. It's been a lot of fun to write the funny stuff, and it's been heartbreaking to write the tough stuff. But both have their rewards, and both have been well-received by my writers group, so far. It's a total learning curve!
Speaking of learning curve, I've decided to take this year to learn about financial investment - HA! - so weird. Such a grown-up thing to do and talk about. I hate it, but I need it. AND... it turns out most grown-ups are just faking it, anyway, and don't know much more than me. They pay other people to take care of their money, which is why so many people lose so much all the time. Sigh...I am all about self-education, so I am hoping to make some headway by the end of the year towards actually making investments. And you'd better believe I will be sure to know exactly where my money is going and will only support environmentally conscious "green" companies, that do no animal testing, produce no toxic waste/pollutants, and treat their employees fairly.
I did participate in the NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge for the second year. In 2014, I got an Honorable Mention for my Round 1 Historical Fiction. This year, my Round 1 Sci-fi story got me to Round 2, where I was once again assigned Historical Fiction. Instead of the 1920s, I wrote about 16th c. Florentine painters but did not make it to the final round. At this rate, I will be in Round 3 in 2016!
Fingers crossed!
You can read those short stories and eight others in my story collection, "The Devil's in the Details and Other Stories," available digitally on Amazon and iBooks.
I moved into a new massage office at the start of March. It is a large, lovely space, with a lot of bodyworkers in the building. The Wallingford neighborhood is great for walking and feeling like you are part of a community. I am close to a couple of great coffeeshops, a credit union in case I need to do some banking, a lot of great restaurants, and more. I have taken to the closest coffeeshop not only for lunch, but as a writing spot midday or after work.
I'm still doing a lot of research and study on writing and story craft, to help me in the still-to-come sixth draft revision of HISMZA. Meanwhile, I have been writing and editing several memoir pieces, mostly centered around place and travel. It's been a lot of fun to write the funny stuff, and it's been heartbreaking to write the tough stuff. But both have their rewards, and both have been well-received by my writers group, so far. It's a total learning curve!
Speaking of learning curve, I've decided to take this year to learn about financial investment - HA! - so weird. Such a grown-up thing to do and talk about. I hate it, but I need it. AND... it turns out most grown-ups are just faking it, anyway, and don't know much more than me. They pay other people to take care of their money, which is why so many people lose so much all the time. Sigh...I am all about self-education, so I am hoping to make some headway by the end of the year towards actually making investments. And you'd better believe I will be sure to know exactly where my money is going and will only support environmentally conscious "green" companies, that do no animal testing, produce no toxic waste/pollutants, and treat their employees fairly.
I did participate in the NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge for the second year. In 2014, I got an Honorable Mention for my Round 1 Historical Fiction. This year, my Round 1 Sci-fi story got me to Round 2, where I was once again assigned Historical Fiction. Instead of the 1920s, I wrote about 16th c. Florentine painters but did not make it to the final round. At this rate, I will be in Round 3 in 2016!
Fingers crossed!
You can read those short stories and eight others in my story collection, "The Devil's in the Details and Other Stories," available digitally on Amazon and iBooks.
