On Monday, June 4 2012 you can get a free copy of You Want to Be Me for download on your kindle from Amazon.com. Check it out and leave me a comment or review. I would appreciate it. Just follow the link on the right by clicking the book cover. Nothing is better than free! I will do more promotions in the coming weeks if you miss this one.

You can download a free copy of You Want To Be Me for your Kindle on Monday. One day only, so make sure you remember the date! Leave me a review once you make your way there and have time to peruse it. It is new YA reading material.

I have the whole summer ahead of me and can I just say that I have never before been looking forward to the alone time that I plan on spending with writing. There is so many stories that I have started and just need to finish and format. It has been killing me! But, there is one thing standing in my way: Game of Thrones. I started watching the series last year and had to read the books. I am currently a quarter of the way through with book four. But these are so long and I find myself screaming, screw you George R.R. Martin for taking up so much of my life! In truth, I love them. Many people I know are watching the series and they talk aboutt what is currently happening and I have to just walk away because I want to share too many secrets when they say so and so needs to die or so and so will be king. Ugh the frustration! Then I think to myself, what a great author that has made me become so enthralled with such vivid descriptions and characters that I too want to kill them off? But, I can only aspire to be as successful as he has become. We are different are a different type of writer, Martin and myself, but the passion he has put into this work is invigorating. By the way I am not done with the books, but I love John Snow and the Imp.

Advice Giver

A student has begged me to read his writing and give him honest feedback on what I think. I knew before reading it that it was graphic, horrorific, and that his parents knew he was writing this as fiction. I also want to preface this with saying that I have watch every SAW movie out, so I am not sensitive to gore. However, I was overwhelmed because there was mutilation of babies.... Maybe that is where I draw the line. I gave feedback on the paper and even crossed a section out that even I felt could be literary taboo. I am afraid I might crush this new writer. I never wanted people to read my work because I hated the criticism. I did like some of his sentences. They were eloquent and they were meaningful and his story was wonderful because I could feel the pain that was haunting this student. But how much is too much in literature and where our world has gone today? Are there any subjects that are off limits? Or, have we gotten to the point that every new story has to overtake the last and be more shocking? How much is too much? That is my question and I would love to hear what all you others have to think, especially with the idea of free speech being front and center.

Reduced Price

I have put You Want to be Me up for the reduced price of .99 for the holidays. I am hoping that maybe people will want to pick up cheap copies of something to read on their new devices. You can buy it here http://www.amazon.com/You-Want-Be-Me-ebook/dp/B0054SI3QQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1307677734&sr=1-2

Happy Reading!

Christmas

I am more than excited to be out for Christmas break!!!! The holiday has now come and gone, but I still have vacation and that is all I need. I have decided to spend my time writing and blocking out the rest of the world. But as I search the blank page for the my next inspiration I have thoughts that clutter my mind and sometimes just need to express.

I have to say that I am quite dissapointed in my family and friends this holiday season. I like tradition. I think it makes us who we are and we have to remember that and what has made this world work. I can remember the day that I would receive on average two or three Christmas cards a year. I would love to see the expressions of people that might not live near on with their shiny holiday gear on. This year I sent out my normal 30-35 cards to family and friends. I received one FOUR! I was wished a Merry Christmas on Facebook by numerous people or the overall status update of Merry Christmas. But really? Has technology really overrun us so much that we no longer take the time to even facebook people individually? This is coming from someone that loves technology. I read on my Kindle, I listen to Pandora, my kids have ipods. Gaming systems along with flat screens have been in my house since they came out. However, I like the tradition of taking the time to remember those that you don't see everyday. Has the Christmas tradition changed and this will soon be a thing of the past? I for one hope not!

Back to Work

Summer has been over for a few weeks for me now and it is back to work and routine. It is so hard to find time to write between actually being at work, kids being in school, being a mom, being a wife, grading papers, and sleep. Ugh, I saw a preview for that new Sarah Jessica Parker movie I don't know how she does it and I was like, yeah I get her. My head has about a zillion stories floating around and I dream up even more at night, but I can't seem to ever get disciplined enough to sit and put them down on paper. Perhaps that is why it took me years to actually get my first manuscript completed.

I have still been shopping it around, but haven't heard anything but sorry this project doesn't seem right for us at this time. I take it in stride.... I do want to say though, hey why not keep it until it is the right time... they probably wouldn't like that much though. I will continue to shop it up and see what might some day come out of it. When and if it does, it will be a nice surprise I'm sure.

When do any of you other writers seem to find the time? Is it something you have to schedule? Do you just let it happen? Do you run away to a retreat and hope the ideas flow once you are there? Any ideas at this point would be helpful.