T - 2 1/2 hours

I am just under three hours before I can start my Nano 2014 book. I have written my synopsis, only a page and a half, found my character pictures, and fleshed out a few details. I think I'm ready. This however will be my first nano as a working mother, witch makes me just a little bit worried. I am hoping for a few hours at night, quietly sitting on my couch, pinking away on my computer, but I am to smart to let that blissful dream stick around to long. There will probably be more than a few nights that I have visitors, little ones that need to get a drink, or go potty for the fifteenth time before they finally fall into bed. I am also anticipating a lot of very tired nights for myself after a long days work. I am just hoping that by the time November 3oth rolls around I am making coherent sentences! Even with all the hurtles I am facing this year, I know I can do it! It is going to be hard, but most things that are hard are totally worth it! So all my Nano friends, I wish you good writing, happy stories, and many useful hours with the Nano muse!

Staying Ahead, or Not!

It has been a crazy couple of weeks. The hubby had surgery and that always takes a tole on things, but he is recovering well and thankfully I have an one of those husbands who hates to complain, so it hasn't been that bad. Other things keep popping up also, random things that take up lots of time and leave me feeling tired in the end. I know that life is the number one reason we stop doing the things we love. I have been kind of anxious about Nano. Sometimes I feel like there just isn't enough time in the day to get everything done, and catch up on everything I haven't done for the past, like 30 years! Part of me thinks that I should put Nano on the shelf this year and try again another time, then the other part of me says, "get it together girl!" Whatever my brain may be saying, I definitely have a decision to make. This problem has got me thinking. There are hundreds of things we have to do every day. Some of those things we have to do to survive, so they aren't really options, but other things are disposable. I wonder how much time we spend on average on the internet doing nothing of value, on Facebook or browsing YouTube. How many hours a day do we watch television or spend time gaming? I think a lot about those people a hundred years ago didn't have those distractions and who got so much accomplished in a single day. They worked and toiled over everything and had very little time to relax and enjoy the fruits of their labors. We on the other hand have all this amazing technology to help us be productive and they we still don't take time to do the things we love because we fill up all that extra time with crap! So here is my goal, cut out the crap! That doesn't mean that I can't send an email, or send a quick message to a friend. That doesn't mean on Date Night I have to skip the movies, but I can not check Facebook six times a day. I can stop watching a show on TV every night and get in a couple hundred words on my Nano book. IT CAN BE DONE! I challenge you to look at your life and see what you can cut back on so that you can do something you love, whatever it is. Spend time with your family, read or write a good book, go for a walk, enjoy the "Extra" time our world has afforded us, and I promise it will be well worth it!

Free Book!

"A Ransomed Heart" is free today, tomorrow and Sunday. Check it out! http://www.amazon.com/Ransomed-Heart-Alex-Taylor-Wolfe-ebook/dp/B00BUVWMIG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1413561639&sr=8-2&keywords=A+Ransomed+Heart+books This is a Clean Historical Fiction. There is no sexual content in this book. Annabelle Casey hasn't met Robert Seiver yet, but their engagement saves her entire family from destitution. This isn't the fairytale wedding she had dreamed of, but a marriage of convenience seems to be her only choice. When her trip to the Seiver Ranch is interrupted by a band of outlaws, she may find that her overturned stagecoach in the barren Wyoming badlands is where her future really begins. Logan Bailey has plans for revenge, but the fiery young redhead he kidnaps for ransom is changing them all. Years of anger have hardened him, but Robert Seiver's fiancé is giving him second thoughts, and not just about money. Can he put away a lifetime of hate for a girl he hardly knows? Can Annabelle marry Mr. Seiver and save her family, or will she choose Logan, the man who holds her heart for ransom. If you do read it and enjoy it, please remember to leave and honest review, I love hearing from my readers so I can better my writing, and bring stories to you that you will enjoy. Happy Reading!

I Thought I Learned This!

With the release of "Temperance and Treason," I have now been able to focus more on getting ready for Nano. I have a great idea but it is set in a time period I don't know much about, so I have been doing research. It has been interesting to read and learn about the Civil War, but I swear I have learned this before! I graduated from High School in 1998, that was sixteen years ago, and it is amazing the things I have forgotten. I know I learned about the Civil War, I probably took a test on it, but I have learned so much more doing this research. I probably took a history class in College also, but I still think it is cool that I am learning more! I am a big advocate of writing about things that you know about, things you understand, but I also think we need to stretch ourselves and learn more about the world around us. I know lots of people that write Fantasy, and Science Fiction, and it could be argued that you don't have to do research for those topics, but I disagree. I think every form of writing can benefit from research. I think it makes our writing more real, and more full. So whatever you're doing for Nano I want to encourage you to look up something new, it doesn't have to be big, but go to the library search something out, it will be good for you. Open up the books and learn something, you never know what you might find, or remember!

It's almost LIVE!!!

"Temperance and Treason" is now available on Kindle!! It has been a long road, but it's almost live! "Temperance and Treason" was a Nano book from a couple of years ago, I really enjoyed writing it because it was different than what I had done before. I have always been interested in Regency Romances but there is a lot I don't understand about the time period, so I decided to set Temperance in the time period that I loved, but in a world that doesn't really exist. It was fun to write about Kings, and Lords and Ladies, so Temperance really ended up being a labor of love for myself. I can't promise it will be fabulous, or deep, or inventive, but I can promise a love story and a little bit of suspense. I know not everyone will love it, and I know a few people will hate it, but again, I wrote this one for myself. I hope that any writer can do something they love, even if it is selfish, and then have the courage enough to share it with the world. Well enough of the emotional sentiments, you can find "Temperance and Treason" on Amazon Kindle tomorrow morning. I hope you enjoy it, and if you do, please leave a positive review and comment. Thank you to all those who support me and my hobby of story telling. Happy reading!

Release Ready!!

Many of you who have released a eBook know how much time and effort goes into formatting and tweaking things to look just right. I have been working on "Temperance and Treason" all week to make sure it is ready to go live on Sunday. It has been fun to read through the book again and become reacquainted with the characters. It is interesting to me that when I read it makes me want to write. Getting this book ready for publication has made me even more excited about Nano, and the story I have in my head. Maybe I should release a book around Nano every year! For anyone who is interested here in another plug for my newest book "Temperance and Treason." Temperance Dennison has a secret that even she doesn't know about. Her father has left something in her care and she is only now figuring out what it is, and how it will affect her entire life. It wasn't a normal Coming Out season, not with the death of her father and the threats to the Sable Kingdom. Unexpected suitors, and hidden assassins make it hard for her to know who to trust, but she needs to finds someone fast, or everyone she cares about will suffer. Lord Deacon Colburn has only one objective, find the Dennison Documents and save the King. Temperance holds the key, and he is determined to get it from her even if he has to break her heart. A seasoned warrior, and cousin to the king, Deacon never suspects he will face the greatest threat of all,falling in love. Can Deacon and Temperance work together and find the documents that will save the entire kingdom, and can they trust the love that binds them to save not only themselves but everyone they love? You can find "Temperance and Treason" on Amazon. Available Sunday, October 12th.

Research, research, research!!

With Nano quickly approaching I think we should talk about research. I know a lot of writers like to just write as many words as possible during Nano and then worry about the small things later, but not me. I know Nano is suppose to be writing abandonment but I have to keep my facts straight so therefor I research. Some years I like to print a bunch of pictures off, both of character and places, other years I wing it, this year I think I am going to do a little of both. Because I try to set my stories in real life places I need to check things out to make sure I know what I am talking about. For example this book is going to be set in the Idaho Territory, one year post Civil War. Well, just because I live in Idaho doesn't mean I know everything about the Idaho Territory. Did you know that up until 1860 Idaho was part of the Old Washington Territory, in 1861 in became the Nebraska Territory and in 1863 in became the Idaho Territory. It's a good think I figured this all out because if the book had been set any time before 1863, I would have been calling it the wrong thing. There is a good deal more information that I have found during my studies and anyone who is reading my book, and enjoys history would appreciate my exactness. So, in my opinion, research is a fundamental element in my Nano writing. I have also learned more about the Civil War than I knew at first. It has been interesting to read about why things happened, not just that they happened. It helps me understand characters that I might encounter during my writing. I would, at that time, be considered a Yankee, but that doesn't mean that I don't need to understand the sympathies of a Confederate Solder. Their cause was just as important to them as it was to the North. I think it is important, that even though we are writing about fictitious people in a fictitious story that we give them real life attributes and understandings, that is what makes them relatable in our lives. A lot of time we write about things we know, but we can only have so many life experiences. Sometimes we need to write about what we don't know personally about, but can experience through our characters perspective. Don't be afraid to research something and then write about it, that is how we learn and grow as authors. In the long run I am just giving you a suggestion of how I approach Nano. Research is an integral part of that process for me. If you interested in something, read about it, learn about it, then write about it, it will give a better understanding of whatever it is you may be wanting to learn about. Good luck, and my the force be with you!

It's Coming!

Treason, murder, deceit, love, and a plot to kill the King. Temperance Dennison has a secret that even she doesn't know about. This won't be a regular Coming Out Season when Temperance is fielding prospective suitors and avoiding possible assassins. It is becoming clear she doesn't know who to trust, but she has to trust someone or her King will pay the ultimate price. An unexpected invitation to attend a ball at the Black Palace, thrusts her into a world where she is the biggest piece to a tangled puzzle, and some people will stop at nothing to obtain what she has. A precarious treaty between the Sable Kingdom and the Kingdom of Malerine leaves King Rabin in a dangerous position. Lord Deacon Coleburn would do anything to keep his cousin safe, even court a girl he hardly knows, who may or may not have the information they so desperately need. He isn’t her only suitor though, and not all of them have the most honorable of intention. The line between service to his King, and the love of a woman becomes dangerously blurred, and it may cost him everything he holds dear. Look For it on Amazon, October 12, 2014!!

Always so Much to Do!

I love being busy, it keeps me from getting into trouble, but sometimes busy is trouble. It is hard to get all the ideas down when I am going from work, to being a mom, to writing...I know, something we all struggle with. Sometimes I will think of a great idea and just want to sit down and start, but I can't because I am to busy. I think I may have solved this problem. Most of us carry our phones with us everywhere we go, so why don't we just email ourselves our great ideas. If you are like me, you already have a hundred WIP, but my opinion is, never let a good idea go to waste! Instead of trying to keep all these ideas in our head, why don't we fill our inbox up with them. Anyway, tidbit of the day...turn your microphone on your phone and let it flow...haha. Happy Writing, and Good Monday!

Getting Nano Ready

How is everyone feeling about Nano this year? We have one month roughly, to put something together that we can write about for 50,000 words. I know how hard it is to try to come up with an idea that you will love after a month of forced writing. I have been doing Nano for about 5 years now, two of my Nano books have been worth something, one is published, and another is soon to be, but some years the stories are absolutely horrible. Last year I loved the concept of my book but I hated every word of it, I tried to switch in the middle of the story to something more usable but I never finished. A couple of years before that I tried my hand at a YA novel, it just wasn't happening. I have had some years when I hated my characters, and other years when my characters hated me. Over all Nano is a hard, frustrating, exhausting experience, but it is totally worth it! When I tell people I participate in a month long writing competition they think I'm insane, I don't always disagree, but I try to tell them about the value of the experience. It gives me an opportunity not to care about all the technical things. I don't have to wonder if, what I want to happen can really happen, or give all the whys, and or reasons for something to happen. I get to develop my characters and fall in love with who they are. I get to exaggerate and be whimsical. I can enjoy the settings and everyday activities my characters find themselves in. It is a good reason to write with no excuses. Sometimes I think we as writers try to hard to follow all the rules, and it stifles our true voices and makes us afraid to express what we really think for fear of rejection, or that review we dread. Sometimes we need to use exclamation marks and incomplete sentences. Our writing should mirror real life, and there are plenty of times that I exclaim things! My favorite thing about Nano is that I get to be myself. So, if you are on the fence about Nano, my suggestion is to not look at the 50,000 words, or the fact that we need to write all those words in 30 days, but that we get to write at all! We get to vomit words out onto the page and not care if they "flow." We get to stare writers block in the face and tell it to take a hike. We get a whole month of unfettered, uncontrolled, unabashed writing! Use all the exclamation marks you want, and for Pete sake, have a good time!!