Sometimes I’m surprised I can get any words written at all.
Yeah … I love every minute of it.
I mean, what else is the second (seriously hard) chair for?
Cramped working conditions
Category: cats
Leo hates his foot
I’m not a hundred percent sure why, but Leo appears to loathe his left foot this morning.
I’m not sure what his left foot has done to betray him, but I hope I never step out of line far enough to receive that withering glare.
In other news, Happy Monday!
But, in real life …
I write stories of good versus evil, epic demon-infested battles, and life threatening scenarios. My heroes are loyal and stalwart, willing to sacrifice anything and everything for duty and morality.
You know, sword and sorcery saving the world with some chocolate and true love rolled into the mix. The battered and bloody hero always triumphs to win the day, the battle, and the war, sort of thing.
But, in my real life …
The cat always wins.
Even when voices are raised and pillows are being tossed at 5 a.m., or pages desperately need to be written, or the bathroom door has to be closed because there are guests in the house or a business meeting being conducted over Skype in the living room.
The. Cat. Always. Gets. His. Way.
And there are two of them:
I guess that’s just the life of a writer.
Leo moderates the blog
💞 I hope you’re all behaving yourselves while commenting on the giveaway post, because Leo has taken over moderating duties 💞
Cats don’t get coffee breaks
I just wandered down to the kitchen to make myself a hot chocolate as I do almost every day for my coffee break. Because his office is also the dining room off the kitchen, Michael and I tend to chat for the time it takes me to heat milk and melt chocolate. Today I was a bit earlier than usual, and Leo was howling from the laundry room.
The following conversation ensued:
Me: What is up with Leo?
Michael: He wants dry food, but it isn’t time for lunch.
Me: I guess it’s coffee break.
Michael: Cats don’t get coffee breaks.
Me: Yeah, their entire life is a coffee break.
Yes, I should be writing 😛
HAPPY MONDAY!
Leo in Repose
Leo doesn’t find the new sheets scratchy at all. Though watching them get torn off the bed at midnight and replaced with the old shredded-but-soft ones was probably seriously entertaining.
His owner, however, is not amused. She is a big fan of her (usually) comfy bed.
Sorry … I’ve been sick …
I’ve fallen down on the Writer Wednesday and Fiction Friday posts due to a crazy cold. Gah!
And YES, there is a double paperback giveaway coming – SOON!! I just have to crawl to the post office and get my hands on the pretty books waiting for me there …
Back to regularly scheduled writing and updates tomorrow, I promise. I’m almost done the second draft of Dowser 3!! Maybe I’ll post some teasers this week?? Oh, yes!
Now what photo should I attached here? *digs around in computer vault* How about this snuggle fest?
The Old Man in the Cupboard
I just traded the following series of texts with Michael:
Me: (referring to picture above) If I’m very crafty I might figure out how to trap all three of them!
Michael: It looks like Leo is seriously considering joining Parker
Me: Exactly. It’s all going to according to my plan.
Michael: Where is the old man?
Me: In the cupboard. But he did come out and climb in the box first. By the time I thought to grab my phone he was back in the cupboard. I’ve fed him in there twice so far. No shrieking yet today.
Um … yeah. The old man Michael is asking about is our older cat, Darby.
Not either of our fathers.
Ahem.
Just in case you were worried.
And the door to the cupboard is WIDE open. It’s just that a heat duct runs underneath it so it’s very warm, and the old man is losing all his hair because of the steroids he takes for his asthma.
Yeah, I’m still talking about our cat.
Darby.
Not a random old man I’ve got locked in the cupboard.
Just in case you were worried.
To begin a new year…
Monday, January 6, 2014. 9 a.m. PST –
I settle down at my desk. It’s been over two weeks since I laid my pen to paper, so I’m eager to dive in but careful in my approach. The day is crisp, literally there is frost coating all the houses that spread between the ocean and my home office window. The sea is flat today, but ready, posed to roll. The craggy mountains that carve through the light blue sky are snowcapped. Wisps of clouds colour but don’t dampen the horizon.
I open my notebook to see where I’ve left my work in progress. Parker, the golden Persian, snuggles next to me on the reclaimed 100-year-old fir desk. He curls his paw around my left arm. I read through the first two handwritten paragraphs in the notebook and try to strikeout a sentence only to realize there is no ink in my pen. Of course, I need ink. A fountain pen doesn’t fare well from two weeks of neglect.
I fill the pen with green ink.
Now I am ready.
Life is damn fine in 2014.
Let’s see what shit I can get Jade into today.
Richard Parker oversees Chapter Five
Soon I will be announcing the release date for Trinkets, Treasures, and Other Bloody Magic (aka Dowser #2)(YAY!!!). But, to tide you over until then, I thought you’d like to see that Richard Parker, the golden-shaded Persian, is cracking his whip this afternoon and keeping me on track with the first draft of Dowser #3.
About to crack Chapter Five and 21,000+ words.
And yes, that is a mug of hot chocolate. What else did you expect?